Using survey and interview information, the impacts of job loss 011 former employees of a Zenith Corporation plant in Springfield, Missouri, are identified and placed in the context of existing research findings. Even in the "New Economy" period of national economic expansion and in a robust local job market, many displaced workers endured significant drops in earnings and benefits and experienced decreased work satisfaction. Although women took longer than men to become reemployed, displacement did not lead more women than men to withdraw permanently from the labor force. Additionally, the plant closing led some workers to adopt more critical attitudes toward big business and government and to strengthen their support of organized labor. A model that predicts perceived negative impacts of displacement and links them to disaffection with business and government is presented. The study also explores reasons why programs for displaced Zenith workers were not broadly effective and suggests ways that such programs could be reformed to be of greater use for future dislocated workers.As America crossed the bridge to the twenty-first century, many people were enjoying the fruits of a thriving "New Economy." The national unemployment ratc hovered around 4 percent, real wages had risen for middle-income earners for four years running, and the threat of recession then seemed remote. However, even in a sea of good financial news, an economic undertow of plant closings and job displacements continued to affect millions of Americans. An average of nearly 5,700 "mass layoff events" took place each year between 1996 and 1999, and about 1.2 million people annually lost work in such "events" (BLS 2001a).While many studies of plant shutdowns have been conducted, most have analyzed the impacts of job displacement during national economic recessions or in areas where multiple closures had created a severe regional employment downturn. We undertook a case study of a Zenith Corporation plant closing in Springfield, Missouri, to document Direct all correspondence to Tim Knapp, Dcpartmcnt of Sociology and Anthropology, Southwest Missouri State LJniversity, 901 S. National Ave.. Springfield, MO
Using survey and interview information, the impacts of job loss 011 former employees of a Zenith Corporation plant in Springfield, Missouri, are identified and placed in the context of existing research findings. Even in the "New Economy" period of national economic expansion and in a robust local job market, many displaced workers endured significant drops in earnings and benefits and experienced decreased work satisfaction. Although women took longer than men to become reemployed, displacement did not lead more women than men to withdraw permanently from the labor force. Additionally, the plant closing led some workers to adopt more critical attitudes toward big business and government and to strengthen their support of organized labor. A model that predicts perceived negative impacts of displacement and links them to disaffection with business and government is presented. The study also explores reasons why programs for displaced Zenith workers were not broadly effective and suggests ways that such programs could be reformed to be of greater use for future dislocated workers.As America crossed the bridge to the twenty-first century, many people were enjoying the fruits of a thriving "New Economy." The national unemployment ratc hovered around 4 percent, real wages had risen for middle-income earners for four years running, and the threat of recession then seemed remote. However, even in a sea of good financial news, an economic undertow of plant closings and job displacements continued to affect millions of Americans. An average of nearly 5,700 "mass layoff events" took place each year between 1996 and 1999, and about 1.2 million people annually lost work in such "events" (BLS 2001a).While many studies of plant shutdowns have been conducted, most have analyzed the impacts of job displacement during national economic recessions or in areas where multiple closures had created a severe regional employment downturn. We undertook a case study of a Zenith Corporation plant closing in Springfield, Missouri, to document Direct all correspondence to Tim Knapp, Dcpartmcnt of Sociology and Anthropology, Southwest Missouri State LJniversity, 901 S. National Ave.. Springfield, MO
In this article, the authors evaluate the New Economyaccording to its own claims of growing prosperityand rising standards of living. Using statistics and indicators from the recent economic expansion, theydemonstrate that many of the claims about the New Economy’s increasing prosperitywere highly suspect and remain so today. They conclude that the New Economy discourse is an ideological expression of an explicit political agenda favoring corporate interests.
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