Abstract
The paper discusses how workers are in a weak position today. The paper explains that they are facing job losses and pay and benefits cuts and their lobbying power is weakening. The paper maintains that by creating a worker-rights group that is open to all American workers, regardless of union affiliation, workers can create an inclusive organization with the financial resources to advance a pro-worker agenda.

Outline:
Structuring the Organization
Legislative Program
Conclusion

From the Paper
"Much of the 20th century was defined by the worker movement, with Americans joining labor unions and other organizations in droves to achieve safer working conditions, better benefits, more equitable pay for women and people of color, and several other victories. However, the first years of the 21st century have, in many ways, not been the era of the worker. Union membership is down to just 12 percent of the working population, and the AFL-CIO has suffered infighting and a schism as labor leaders struggle to fix the besieged union movement (Union members)."

Tags:AFL-CIO, union, movement, lobbying, power, working, conditions, benefits

Abstract
This paper argues that American workers will be able to get better jobs if more efforts are made to educate and train them. Furthermore, the assertion is made that work-visas for unskilled workers help increase the amount of workers underbidding Americans for jobs and this also helps to make business owners unmotivated to modernize their businesses. Finally, the living wage rates and organized labor are heralded as protective mechanisms which greatly help maintain workers' abilities to survive and thrive.

From the Paper
"1) Better education and job training would definitely help protect American jobs, particularly in urban areas. Many urban renewal projects are geared towards idealistic objectives and they fall far short of the mark. For example, Indianapolis invested quite a bit of money in a revitalization program for their downtown area. The city experienced..."

Tags:urban, decay, workers

Abstract
The paper shows how American workers take fewer vacation days than workers in most other industrialized nations across the globe. The paper reveals that the United States is second to last in the average number of vacation days provided for by companies for their employers. The paper discusses how advanced technology makes disconnecting from work more difficult and looks at the phenomenon of those who would actually miss their daily routine and responsibilities at work. The paper discusses how stress, health issues, poor nutrition and family strife are all consequences of overwork and too few vacations.

Outline:
Introduction
The Facts
Looking at other Nations
Why
Technology
Why it Needs to Change
Conclusion

From the Paper
"For many generations American families planned and carried out annual vacation traditions. During the cold winter seasons families would sit around and reminisce about the treks in August to Uncle Bob's log cabin by the lake. They would fondly remember the annual three-legged race each year at the Jersey shore, or they would remember to mark their calendar for the annual family reunion in July that lasted at least a week and usually two. Yes, those were the good old days, but where did they go? Today, American workers seem to take less vacation time than ever before as they devote their daily existence to their jobs or at the office. In contrast many European nations have held steady to their valued vacations and it is still not uncommon to see them take a month long holiday each summer to frolic with family members."

Tags:jobs, stress, employers, routine, responsibilities, workaholics

Abstract
This paper addresses the question of whether free trade with countries with low wages harms American workers. It offers different perspectives, as well as an economic perspective relating to comparative and absolute advantage.

From the Paper
"The globalization of manufacturing has led to a massive re distribution of work around the world. One question being asked repeatedly is this: Does international trade with low-wage countries such as China and India steal American jobs and cost American workers higher wages and a higher standard of living? Most economists think international trade is not guilty of forcing wages down, citing concepts such as comparative and absolute advantage and differences in productivity to explain why trade..."

Tags:International trade, free trade, low wages, comparative advantage, absolute advantage, job loss, displacement, government intervention, protectionism, outline.

Abstract
This paper examines how information technology has affected domestic lives and also the professional lives of innumerable workers that constitute a major part of the American society and play a cardinal role in the American economy. It evaluates how it has caused a reduction in repetitive work and tedious procedures, an increase in skill level, possibly higher job satisfaction and an increase in the variety of tasks and greater flexibility. It analyzes related health, safety and perceptional issues and provides an industry wise analysis of its impact.

From the Paper
"For all of us, society is where we live in and according to the norms and regulations of this society, the world transmutes into a place where we learn to get along with others and accept the people around us for what they are and in turn become what we potentially are. However, society does not accept individuals who are not worthy of earning a decent livelihood without any disabilities. Therefore, work, be it manual or automatic, plays a vital role in determining our success as an individual as well as our social status. Thus, entering or joining a workplace is like forming a part of a group thereby receiving all that comes with accepting the norms of it."

Tags:industry, health, job, satisfaction

Abstract
This essay discusses the changes throughout labor unions over the years. It looks at both the public and private sectors. It provides details, percentages, statistics and more. It provides possible reasons for certain changes that have occurred. It concludes with the reasoning that the erosion of the countries participation in labor unions is because of the economic divide between the rich and the poor, as well as the distribution of manual labor to other parts of the world.

From the Paper
"One particular study has found that the decline in private sector union membership in the period from 1977 to 1991 was because of the drop in worker demand for representation in the unions despite the fact that the relative supply of union jobs did not change. (Farber; Krueger, 1992) The drop in union membership can also be attributed to the growth of the service industries as compared to the smokestack industries. Service industries, in general, have almost always resisted unionization. Various industrial sectors have also exhibited differential demands for unionization. For instance, there has always been a heavy demand for unionization in the construction industry which was later replaced by the mining and transportation industries. Unionization has also been extremely high in rubber, railroads and steel industries but all of these industries have seen a dramatic fall in union membership. (Caplow; Bahr; Chadwick; Modell, 1994); (Goldfield, 1989)
One more reason for this fall has been the growth in the white collar is to blue collar worker ratio. It has been a general trend for the white collar worker in the private sector to resist joining any labor union. Obviously, the increase in the percentage of white collar workers amongst the labor force in the private industry leads to a decrease in the percentage of unionized workers. Corporate managers have also played a role in de-unionization by moving their factories from the "Frostbelt" i.e. the Northeast and Midwest to those regions of the countries, "Sunbelt" which permitted them to operate closed shops because of their traditional resistance to unionization. In the last ten years, capitalists have also stepped up their anti-labor offensive preferring to hire non-union workers. The federal government's executive branch has also been generally unsympathetic towards organized labor since 1980. (Caplow; Bahr; Chadwick; Modell, 1994); (Goldfield, 1989)"

Tags:labor union, workers, politics

Abstract
The paper discusses the way the American Immigration Policy was developed and describes how the policy, and the principles that helped to shape the policy, were vastly different from that of Non-Europe nations, such as Japan, that found strength in the ideal of a state based on a single ethnic group. The paper also explains how the United States faced a dilemma as a shortage of highly-skilled American workers and new immigrants appeared a good fit for employment, but lacked, in the eyes of many, reasonable prospects for cultural assimilation. The debate over American immigration would become a new xenophobia that attempted to close America's borders in the name of protecting American culture and jobs; thus, Xenophobia plays an immense role in the formulation of America's immigration policy, in particular, where that policy touches on issues of the immigration of highly-skilled foreign workers.

From the Paper
"Nation states tend to define themselves according to cultural and ethnic characteristics. The large polities of the Ancient and Medieval worlds were essentially multi-ethnic empires, or tributary states, that consisted of numerous groups under the rule of a single people. In recent centuries, and beginning especially in Europe, these conglomerate societies gave way to large territories composed of populations united by custom, history, language, religion, and eventually - government. Such developments led directly to the creation of most modern European countries. During the course of the Nineteenth Century, and into the early Twentieth, the idea spread across much of the globe. Non-European nations, like Japan, found strength in the ideal of a state based on a single ethnic group. From the beginning; however, the United States was different. Though founded mostly under English auspices, the American colonies were, from earliest times, home to members of different cultures, ethnic groups, and religious beliefs. The United States Constitution enshrined within the nation's government notions of universal human rights. The United States - a country of vast open spaces and tremendous untapped resources - encouraged large-scale immigration. Again, most of these early immigrants came from Western Europe. But in time, as the United States industrialized, the need for labor expanded, and America's burgeoning industries drew on an ever-expanding pool of immigrants. The resulting melting pot increased American diversity and highlighted both the differences and similarities among the nation's inhabitants. Protestants, Catholics, and Jews lived side by side, and eventually, America would begin to come to terms with the sharp divisions that existed between Black and White. A long struggle for civil rights at last gave African-Americans equal rights with White Americans of whatever ethnic background. A new era was dawning - an age in which the pool of immigrants was spreading wider again, and growing deeper. By the end of the Twentieth Century and the start of the New Millennium, men and women of widely varied backgrounds were seeking American jobs in unprecedented numbers. They too wanted to live the American Dream. At the same time, the United States faced a dilemma as a shortage of highly-skilled American workers threatened to choke off American prosperity. The new immigrants appeared a good fit for employment, but lacked, in the eyes of many, reasonable prospects for cultural assimilation. The debate over American immigration would become a battle between the demands of global competitiveness, and a kind of new xenophobia, one that attempted to close America's borders in the name of protecting American culture and jobs."

Tags:cultural, ethnic, characteristics, polities, empires

Abstract
This paper examines the production challenges faced by American industry today. It explains that, because the majority of American workers do only what is necessary to retain their jobs and would only be willing to do slightly more work for substantially higher compensation, it is apparent that American workers need a different, innovative style or blend of styles in management to bring about profitable employee productivity. For the purpose of this project, the researcher reviews existing literature and conducts empirical research to determine the causes of mediocrity in American industry and recommends a solution to the problem.

From the Paper
"In the time period from 1970 to 1987, the U.S. share of the domestic market of the telephone manufacturing market went from 99 percent to 25 percent, the American share of the semi-conductor market went from 89 percent to 64 percent, and the American share of the color television market went from 90 percent to 1 percent (Long Ding, 1999). These are all products that were invented by American companies, but markets that the Japanese and other countries have improved upon. Of the 10 most profitable companies in 1970, only three were still in business as of 1999."

Tags:research, management, employee, productivity

Abstract
This paper reviews and critiques the essay "Restoring Workers' Voice" by Thomas A. Kochan. The paper analyzes several of the essays strengths and weaknesses. The paper concludes that the economic welfare of American workers and democracy have declined due to the decline in union power.

Tags:labor unions, employers, employees, median income, economy, industry

Abstract
This paper examines how, in 1994, the U.S., Mexico, and Canada signed a treaty that would foster the abuse and neglect of people, the environment, and culture of the North Americans and how it called for all barriers on goods and services between the countries of North America to be phased out by 2009. It shows how, on one hand, this meant a business could move to Mexico, where people who had been out of work for years would work in squalid conditions for next to nothing, and how it also meant laying off hundreds of thousands of hard-working American workers. The paper attempts to demonstrate that NAFTA is detrimental to both U.S. and Mexican economies because it enables the exportation of U.S. jobs and mistreatment of Mexican workers.

Outline
Background
Chronology
NAFTA?s Downside
The Positive Side to NAFTA
Personal View
Solutions
Conclusion

From the Paper
"NAFTA has shown no increase to the Mexican economy though much pollution has been linked to it. There are currently 1,900 malquidoras in Mexico. Studies conducted along the border have shown that large amounts of the pollution can be attributed to raw sewage and wood smoke produced by these factories. Of these 1,900 malquidoras 1,000 produce hazardous waste. Only 30% of these comply with Mexican environmental codes and merely 19% dispose of their toxic waste properly (Donahue). Much of this is inhibited by the Mexican government's lack of enforcement on the low regulations they have (Lowenstein)."

Tags:economy, mexico, canada