1. The Labor Force

2. Tracking the Labor Force
Employment and Unemployment
The Labor Market Today

3. Tracking the Labor Force: Unemployment
In what year between 1970 and 2013 was the unemployment rate the lowest? What was the unemployment rate in that year?

4. Occupational Trends A Changing Economy Fewer Goods, More Services
Effects of International Competition

5. Occupational Trends
Computers and hand-held devices such as cellphones and tablets have changed the way business, including farming, is done in the United States.

6. The Changing Labor Force
College Graduates
Women at Work
Temporary Workers
The Impact of Foreign-Born Workers

7. The Changing Labor Force
The graphs illustrate trends related to the U.S. labor force. About how many times as many temporary employees were employed in 2012 as were employed in 1970?

8. Wages and Benefits Trends
Real Wages Down
Cost of Benefits

9. Wages and Benefits Trends
Because real wages have actually gone down in recent years, the average worker is able to purchase less with a paycheck than he or she would have been able to purchase in 1979.

10. Labor and Wages

11. Supply, Demand, and the Labor Market
Labor Demand
Labor Supply
Equilibrium Wage
A highly skilled neurosurgeon can earn over $500,000 per year. Neurosurgeons must complete four years of medical school and several more years of residency training.

12. Supply, Demand, and the Labor Market

13. Labor and Skills
Why do lawyers earn more money than carpenters, and carpenters more than cashiers? Wages vary according to workers’ skill levels and education, as well as according to supply and demand. Jobs are often categorized into four skill levels:

14. Unskilled
Semi-Skilled
Skilled
Professional

15. Discrimination in the Labor Market
Laws Against Wage Discrimination
Pay Levels for Women
Pay Levels Across Society

16. Additional Factors Affecting Wages
Minimum Wage Laws
Safety Laws
Employers Respond to Wage Levels
Unions

17. Labor Unions

18. Organized Labor
According to the graph, after what year did private-sector union membership start its decline? About what percent of workers belonged to private-sector unions in that year?

19. The History of the Labor Movement
Working Conditions in the 1800s
Unions Take Hold
Employer Resistance
A Thriving Movement

20. The History of the Labor Movement
The American labor movement got its start in the 1800s, when dangerous working conditions prevailed. Infer Why do you think the early years of the labor movement were marked by violence?

21. The Decline in Labor Union Membership
As they grew, some unions began to abuse their power. Some sought to preserve outdated and inefficient production methods in order to protect jobs. As you read earlier, some unions managed to preserve job positions that were unnecessary—called “featherbedding”—in order to keep more members employed. As a result, companies that badly needed to improve efficiency to stay competitive found that unions could be an obstacle.

22. The Decline in Labor Union Membership
“Right-to-Work” Laws
Decline of Traditional Strongholds
Reduced Need for Unions

23. Labor and Management The Bargaining Process Strikes
Outside Help Reaching Settlements (Arbitration)