This workshop collection contains a paper which analyzes the actual and potential income and wealth sources of rural inhabitants, an appendix which discusses the effectiveness of current transfer payment programs in reaching the rural poor, and a reviewer's comments. The paper by Emery Castle and Mark Goldstein describes incomes of rural residents…

Trends in the labor force participation and unemployment of older workers were reviewed in a study. A declining rate of labor force participation by older men and a growth in participation by older women were noticed. Examination of labor force participation rates by race revealed a higher participation rate for minority women than for older white…

Women are at a disadvantage under both Social Security and private employee pension plans because the retirement systems were set up at a time when most women were non-working spouses of employed men, a condition that no longer exists. Today women workers, divorcees, and widows of retirees often find themselves with inadequate retirement benefits…

Provides a detailed examination of the "Dual System" of vocational education--a system combining compulsory part-time education with on-the-job training. Spells out the system's strong points and main problems and discusses issues such as labor supply and demand, educational/vocational discrimination against girls and women, and problem…

Workers in flexible staffing arrangementsincluding temporary agency, direct-hire temporary, on-call, and contract workersare much less likely than regular, direct-hire employees to be covered by laws mandating or regulating workplace benefits. They are also much less likely to receive pension, health insurance, and other benefits on the job.…

Contains nine articles discussing how lives of students will be affected by future changes. Discusses the work ethic and work values in a time of change, entering the 80s job market, women and employment. Describes students' changing sexual values, and the impact of computers and declining enrollment on education. (RC)

A review of European research on the relationship between higher education and employment addresses a variety of issues, including changing employment opportunities and patterns for graduates, "appropriate" employment and educational relevance, and employer expectations and recruitment criteria. (MSE)

This article reviews professional literature published in 2004 related to career counseling and career development. The literature is divided into 4 broad areas: professional issues, career theory and concepts, career interventions and practice, and career assessment and technology. The authors summarize and discuss the implications of the…

Fifty-four percent of all midlife and older American women are in the work force. Like their younger counterparts, most older women work in nonprofessional occupations. Regardless of their age, working women earn less than men. Sixty-five percent of working women aged 45 to 64 are married; 30 percent are widowed, divorced, or separated; and 5…

A study was undertaken to arrive at a broad overview of the Soviet training utilization of foreign area specialists. To gather data for the study, researchers examined European, United States, and Soviet publications and interviewed Soviet emigres and U.S. specialists on the Soviet Union. According to these data sources, specialized training for…

The rapid impoverishment of women and their children has serious implications for the American family and for the nation. This report includes testimony before the Illinois Commission on the Status of Women from national and state representatives of women's organizations, social services agencies, advocacy groups, and civil rights organizations. A…

Recent changes in patterns of population location, industrial employment, and technology in the north central United States have produced implications for vocational education in rural areas. Missouri has greater social, cultural, demographic, and economic diversity than other states in the region, but is representative of the area for purposes of…

While the past 10 years have been marked by major gains for working women, the overall status of working women has improved very little. The profile of the working woman today is different from that of 25 years ago. Today over 44 million women work. Of these, 7 million belong to minority groups. Since 1930 families headed by women have tripled in…

Leading-edge firms (LEFs)--at the forefront of their industry in terms of growth or market share--may influence skill development through diffusion of technology, products, or practices and use of market power to set standards or change customer businesses. Study of LEFs can identify the type and mix of skills needed in the industry. LEFs are…

In 1995, nearly three-quarters of a million high school dropouts, age 16 and above, took the General Educational Development (GED) tests in pursuit of alternative secondary certification. The GED performs the following functions: stimulate human capital investment; measure and assess cognitive skills; certify dropouts with specified skill and…