Labor Day Round-up

As we move towards Labor Day...

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  The Economic Policy Institute reports record wage erosion for hourly wage earners.  Inflation is starting to pick back up, and is outpacing wage growth.  Family incomes are declining.  



• Sen. McConnell told people at a Commerce Lexington policy luncheon at Keeneland that he and his fellow Senate Republicans would not support the Employee Free Choice Act, which would remove some of the barriers for workers to organize.  According to a Herald-Leader article, McConnell hypothesized that union membership has declined "because we have very enlightened management in this country now, treating employees better.â€  Interesting theory.
  

• Unemployment in Kentucky is now 11%--the highest it's been since 1983, when it was 11.1%.  In some counties it's as high as 19%.
  

It's time to turn this thing around. 

• According to an Apollo Alliance report, investing in energy efficiency and renewable energy could affect Kentucky's economy over 10 years with an additional 44,783 new jobs. Based on those figures, if Kentucky were to invest $43 million per year (half of what coal industry is getting now) over the next 20 years, the state could transition the 18,000 coal-mining and 52,000 coal-related jobs into other employment.  (You can read more on the Transitioning Appalachia post.)


• Kentucky had more than 9,000 "clean energy jobs" in 2007, according to a report by the Pew Charitable Trust found.  The jobs that are growing in Kentucky are clean energy jobs.  Between 1998 and 2007, Kentucky had a clean energy job growth rate nearly triple the overall state job rate growth rate.

• MACED has identified other new or expandable sources of good jobs for Kentucky, including expanding our local food systems, creating a sustainable forest products economy, rehabbing our water, leaning up dumps and abandoned landfills, and repairing and creating parks that promote eco-tourism.