WHERE ARE THE JOBS? One of the driving forces for getting a college education is the student's desire to become qualified to work in a career of their choosing. The United States has recently suffered a pretty intense economic recession (if not an outright depression) beginning in the latter stages of the 2000s when housing prices began to plummet after reaching an artificially-inflated high. Many jobs were lost as the result of this housing bubble explosion. These jobs are just beginning to come back to the US as the economy recovers. In this lab, you will explore what job sectors are leading in this recovery. Learning outcomes: Upon completion students will be able to... Compute and analyze rates of change (percentage, absolute, average) from selected tables and graphs. Use growth rates to analyze quantitative data in various contexts including real world data, student generated data or data found in current media. Critique the construction of graphs, charts and visual displays of quantitative information which may be misleading. Given linear and exponential data, interpret the rate of change within the given context. Scoring/Grading rubric: Questions 1-4 & 7-11: 3 points each Questions 5-6 & 12-16: 5 points each Question 17: 8 points Total: 70 points Introduction: NPR's Planet Money blogger Jacob Goldstein has produced a graphic showing the growth in different job sectors since the recession. It can be found at the following website: http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2013/07/11/201075339/where-the-jobs-areand-where-they-arent-in-1-graph The graph should be interpreted as follows: The size of the circle represents the number of jobs in each industry in May 2013. The circle's position on the vertical axis shows the number of jobs lost or gained since the start of the recession. The circle's position on the horizontal axis shows average hourly earnings for workers as of Spring 2013. Directions: Answer the following questions as you examine this job data. Of the job sectors detailed... 1. ...which job sector currently has the most jobs? Health Care 2. ...which job sector currently has the least jobs? Manufacturing/Distribution 3. ...which job sector pays the greatest average hourly earnings? Professional and Technical Services 4. ...which job sector pays the least average hourly earnings? Leisure and Hospitality 5. ...which job sector has gained the most jobs since the recession? What do you believe to be the cause of this growth? I believe that health care has gained the most jobs since the recession. Health care is always on the rise, so therefore there are always job openings in the health care industry. There has been a rise of numbers of those who need health care services. This increases the amount of employees needed, opening more jobs. 6. ...which job sector has lost the most jobs since the recession? What do you believe to be the cause of this loss? Manufacturing and Distribution has lost the most jobs since the recession. Since the recession not many houses are being made therefore the jobs in this field dropped tremendously. There are more jobs in productivity other than distribution. Based off the graph... 7. ...approximate the number of jobs currently possessed by the mining and logging industry. 300,000 8. ...approximate the number of jobs gained since the recession by the leisure and hospitality industry. 700,000 9. ...approximate the average hourly earnings of a worker in the transportation and warehousing industry. $23/Hour The Bureau of Labor Services has phenomenal data compiling capabilities on its site. Visit the following link to jobs numbers to aid in answering the subsequent questions: http://www.bls.gov/webapps/legacy/cesbtab1.htm 10. How many non-seasonally adjusted private sector jobs were there in the US in May 2013? 114574 11. How many non-seasonally adjusted public sector (government) jobs were there in the US in May 2013? 22242 12. If these two types of jobs make up all non-farming jobs in the US in May 2013, what percent of US jobs belong in the private sector and what percent belong in the public sector? 13. After May 2008, the private sector began to shed quite a few jobs. a. In what month and year did the US economy hit its low point in number of private sector jobs? January 2010 b. What was the percent decrease in number of private sector jobs from May 2008 until this low point? 14. Find the rate of change in numbers of private sector jobs per month from May 2008 until the low point found in the previous problem. Interpret this rate of change by using the number in a meaningful sentence. 15. While the public sector also eventually lost some jobs, the number of losses was not as great and not as quick to affect the market. The high point for public sector jobs was in May 2010. a. In what month and year did the US economy hit its low point in number of public sector jobs? b. What was the percent decrease in number of public sector jobs from May 2010 until this low point? 16. Find the rate of change in numbers of public sector jobs per month from May 2010 until the low point found in the previous problem. Interpret this rate of change by using the number in a meaningful sentence. 17. Based off your answers to the previous several questions, in your opinion, was the private sector or the public sector more heavily affected by the downturn in the economy following the burst in the housing bubble in the late 2000s? Why do you think this was so? Give possible reasons and explanations. Use meaningful sentences incorporating your answers above in order to write a persuasive paragraph defending your position