[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 70 (Wednesday, June 8, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: June 8, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                               JOB GROWTH

                                 ______


                          HON. LEE H. HAMILTON

                               of indiana

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 8, 1994

  Mr. HAMILTON. Mr. Speaker, I would like to insert my Washington 
Report for Wednesday, June 8, 1994, into the Congressional Record.

                           Creating Good Jobs

       These days, news about the economy is generally good news. 
     The growth rate is solid, unemployment is down, and inflation 
     is under control. The economy is growing in a moderate, 
     sustainable fashion, expanding at an annual rate of 3 to 3\1/
     2\%. Most experts believe that the fundamentals of the 
     economy indicate the best prospects in decades for sustained 
     long-term growth. The problem with the improving economy is 
     that it is still not making life better for many Americans.
       The Two-tiered Recovery: I am impressed that the American 
     work force is becoming divided. Part of that work force is 
     doing very well. Surveys show that good jobs for the highly-
     skilled in areas such as engineering, design, manufacturing, 
     marketing, and sales are available. Plant managers often tell 
     me that labor markets are becoming tight and that they are 
     having trouble finding the workers they need.
       But another part of the work force is being left behind. 
     These workers do not have the education or the flexibility 
     needed in today's economy. They often have skills, but not 
     the right skills for the available jobs. For laid-off 
     workers, the new jobs they find are often temporary or low-
     paying. For those who are employed, wages continue to 
     stagnate, and the gap between skilled and unskilled continues 
     to grow: college graduates now earn on average 77% more than 
     those with a high school diploma or less.
       To put it bluntly, lower-skilled workers are taking a 
     beating in today's economy. Technological change is almost 
     certainly part of the reason. As companies use computers and 
     advanced technology they produce the same goods and services 
     with fewer workers. The resulting unemployment is often 
     translated into lower wages for those laid-off workers who 
     can only find new jobs at lower pay. In addition, competition 
     from low-wage countries can rob some workers in advanced 
     economies of jobs and bid down their wages.
       Creating Good Jobs: I believe that the creation of good 
     jobs is one of the greatest challenges facing the country 
     today. The aim must be to narrow the growing wage gap between 
     Americans who have gone to college and those who have not, 
     those who have high skills and those who do not. We must seek 
     to lift the skills of the non-college-educated in order to 
     reduce income inequality and help make the nation's work 
     force and its economy more competitive. A society that lives 
     with a very large gap between the well-educated and everybody 
     else makes for an unstable society.
       Part of the answer, of course, is vigorous pursuit of 
     economic growth. Noninflationary growth that creates good 
     jobs has to be the paramount goal of economic policy. We also 
     need to focus much more attention on how to cope with the 
     declining job opportunities at the low end of the wage and 
     skill scales, and with the inadequacies of the educational 
     system which simply is not helping workers develop the skills 
     needed for better-paying jobs.
       Growth-oriented Policies: Promoting the growth that creates 
     good jobs starts with reducing the federal budget deficit. 
     Deficit reduction and the resulting lower interest rates have 
     helped create a brighter economic picture in recent months. 
     Last year, Congress enacted a major deficit reduction package 
     to reduce the projected deficit by some $430 billion over the 
     next 5 years. As next year's budget is finalized, we must 
     continue to adhere to budget discipline, reducing the deficit 
     at a steady pace to promote long-term growth.
       We must also address other issues which affect economic 
     growth. Steps that Congress is taking now to reform health 
     care are crucial for the long-term economic health of the 
     country, since much of the increase in federal spending is 
     caused by the surge in health care expenditures. Welfare 
     reform could help us better employ all our productive 
     citizens. Expanding trade opportunities overseas and ensuring 
     that unfair trade practices do not put our workers at a 
     disadvantage will also contribute to economic growth.
       As the economy grows it should develop a self-generating 
     momentum. Businesses should find their sales rising and thus 
     need more production. If they get their costs down and their 
     profits rising they can then begin to hire more people at 
     better wages.
       Education and Training: Better education and training to 
     improve job prospects means many things: improving preschool 
     programs, strengthening primary and secondary education, 
     establishing high performance levels for students, improving 
     school-to-work transitions, and enhancing on-the-job training 
     and retraining. All the experts agree that the future belongs 
     to the knowledged workers.
       Quality basic education is the cornerstone in this effort. 
     To help ensure that all American children receive such an 
     education, Congress recently passed and the President signed 
     a bill to promote voluntary educational standards in basic 
     subject areas. A second new law sets up mechanisms to help 
     local education systems find ways for students to make a 
     successful transition from school to the workplace.
       To help those already in the workforce adapt to changing 
     job markets, the Clinton Administration recently introduced 
     proposals to streamline government-sponsored job retraining 
     programs and to create ``re-employment centers'' where 
     workers might receive income support, counseling, and job 
     search assistance all in one place. Others have suggested 
     providing tax credits for companies that hire workers beyond 
     a certain base number and encouraging firms to spend a 
     portion of payroll or of federal research dollars on employee 
     training. It is important for workers to keep upgrading their 
     skills, since one thing we can say for certain about the 
     future is that the job market of tomorrow will be very 
     different from the job market of today.
       Conclusion: I believe that one of the important economic 
     goals for the nation is to equip all Americans so that they 
     can follow productive careers. We simply have to push ahead 
     with additional investments to improve the skills and 
     flexibility of the work force. The relentless and 
     accelerating pace at which technology is changing work, as 
     well as every other aspect of life, is a challenge we must 
     meet head-on. We must pursue policies which promote economic 
     growth and which invest in America's future by investing in 
     her most valuable asset--her workers.

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