Governors and legislators across the country are targeting public sector compensation as they try to cut spending and rein in budget deficits. To justify cuts to wages and benefit packages, the argument is that public sector workers have it better than their private sector counterparts. What is the situation in West Virginia? An analysis by…
Income and Work
The most important asset to a firm is the presence of a well-trained and productive workforce. One effective way the state achieves this goal is through the Governor's Guaranteed Workforce Training Program, which provides businesses and workers with customized job training. Customized, state-funded job training funding is a vital piece in providing the resources…
In The State of Working West Virginia: The Road to Recovery 2010, the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy examines how the 2009 Recovery Act and other federal programs benefited West Virginians, how the Great Recession caused the loss of good paying industry jobs and how the gap between the rich and the poor…
Recent federal action, such as the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), has likely saved 56,000 West Virginia jobs and prevented a high unemployment rate from escalating further. Read
There's been considerable press over the last couple of years about the costs associated with the retiree health care subsidy (affectionately know as OPEB or Other Post Employment Benefits) offered to state and local employees. I've written about it several times in the past. The basic story is that this subsidy is too generous and…
Here is an article done by the folks at the Center for Rural Strategies, which I may have stolen the title from, about the impact of the Great Recession on rural counties. West Virginia was one of four states, the others being Michigan, Alabama, and Georgia, that lost over 10 percent of their rural jobs. Since July…
Ted pointed out that West Virginia's employment level is at its lowest point in 14 years. A closer look shows that West Virginia's employment situation has been pretty bad for decades. One measure of how well a state or region provides employment is the employment-to-population ratio or employment rate. This ratio is the number of…
According to a recent study by the Center for American Progress , new federal funds from the recent health care legislation should create nearly 5,000 new jobs in West Virginia, thanks to significant investment in community health centers. The Affordable Care Act will provide $11 billion nationwide to build new community health centers and improve existing ones. Most…
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics issued a statement that shows total nonfarm payroll employment declining by 131,000 in July 2010, and the unemployment rate remaining unchanged at 9.5 percent. The decline in employment is the result of federal government census workers wrapping up their work. However, a bright spot in the report exists as private-sector…
After dodging the early months of the national recession, West Virginia workers experienced its full force during 2009, according to a new report by the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy. In addition to information on how workers are faring in the Mountain State, the report outlines policy options that would further economic recovery.…