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No Jobs for the New
Economy or the Old
By Paul Craig Roberts
January 2008
December did not bring
Americans any jobs. To the contrary, the private sector lost 13,000 jobs
from the previous month.
If December is a harbinger
of the new year, it is going to be a bad one. The past year, hailed by
Republican propagandists and "free trade" economists as proof of
globalism's benefit to Americans, was dismal. According to the Bureau of
Labor Statistics' nonfarm payroll data, the U.S. "super economy" created
a miserable 1,054,000 net new jobs during 2007.
This is not enough to keep
up with population growth — even at the rate discouraged Americans,
unable to find jobs, are dropping out of the workforce — thus the rise
in the unemployment rate to 5 percent.
During the past year, U.S.
goods producing industries, continuing a long trend, lost 374,000 jobs.
But making things was the
"old economy." The "new economy" provides services. Last year, 1,428,000
private sector service jobs were created.
Are the "free trade"
propagandists correct that these service jobs, which are our future, are
high-end jobs in research and development, innovation, venture
capitalism, information technology, high finance, and science and
engineering, where the U.S. allegedly has such a shortage of scientists
and engineers that it must import them from abroad on work visas?
Not according to the
official job statistics.
What occupations provided
the 1.4 million service jobs in 2007?
Waitresses and bartenders
accounted for 304,200, or 21 percent of the new service jobs last year
and 29 percent of the net new jobs.
Health care and social
assistance accounted for 478,400, or 33 percent of the new service jobs
and 45 percent of the net new jobs. Ambulatory health care and hospitals
accounted for the lion's share of these jobs.
Professional and business
services accounted for 314,000, or 22 percent of the new service jobs
and 30 percent of the net new jobs. Are these professional and business
service jobs the high-end jobs of which "free traders" speak? Decide for
yourself. Services to buildings and dwellings account for 53,600 of the
jobs. Accounting and bookkeeping services account for 60,500 of the
jobs. Architectural and engineering services account for 54,700 of the
jobs. Computer systems design and related services account for 70,400 of
the jobs.
Management consultants
account for 88,400 of the jobs.
There were more jobs for
hospital orderlies than for architects and engineers. Waitresses and
bartenders accounted for as many of last year's new jobs as the entirety
of professional and business services.
Wholesale and retail trade,
transportation and utilities accounted for 181,000 of 2007's new jobs.
Where are the rest of the
new jobs? There are a few scattered among arts, entertainment and
recreation, repair and maintenance, personal and laundry services, and
membership associations and organizations.
That's it.
Keep in mind that the loss
of 374,000 goods-producing jobs must be subtracted from the 1,428,000
new service jobs to arrive at the net job gain figure. The new service
jobs account for more than 100 percent of the net new jobs.
Keep in mind, too, that
many of the new jobs are not filled by American citizens. Many of the
engineering and science jobs were filled by foreigners brought in on
work visas. Indians and others from abroad can be hired to work in the
United States for one-third less. The engineering and science jobs that
are offshored are paid as little as one-fifth of the U.S. salary. Even
foreign nurses are brought in on work visas. No one knows how many of
the hospital orderlies are illegals.
What a super new economy
Americans have! U.S. job growth has a distinctly Third World flavor. A
very small percentage of 2007's new jobs required a college education.
Since there are so few jobs for university graduates, how is "education
the answer"?
Where is the benefit to
Americans of offshoring? The answer is that the benefit is confined to a
few highly paid executives who receive multimillion-dollar bonuses for
increasing profits by offshoring jobs. The rest of the big money went to
Wall Street crooks who sold trusting people subprime derivatives.
"Free traders" will assert
that the benefit is in low Wal-Mart prices. But the prices are low only
because China keeps its currency pegged to the dollar. Thus, the Chinese
currency value falls with the dollar. The peg will not continue forever.
The dollar has lost 60 percent of its value against the Euro during the
years of the Bush regime. Already, China is having to adjust the peg.
When the peg goes, Wal-Mart shoppers will think they are in Neiman
Marcus.
Just as Americans have been
betrayed by "their" leaders in government at all levels, they have been
betrayed by business "leaders" on Wall Street and in the corporations.
U.S. government and business elites have proven themselves to be
Americans' worst enemies.
To find out more about Paul
Craig Roberts, and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and
cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate web page at
www.creators.com.
COPYRIGHT 2008 CREATORS
SYNDICATE INC
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