Underemployment Affects 9 Million Americans

Beyond the 15 million Americans who have no jobs at all, millions more are caught in part-time or limited jobs that don't pay them enough to maintain their standards of living.

Economists have a technical term for these people: underemployed.But there's nothing technical about it for David Linehan of Quincy, Mass., who lost his job as an analyst for an energy-trading firm during the recession, along with his $30,000 salary and benefits.

The 43-year-old now tries to get by on less than one-third that amount as a driver for a rental car company. His new employer limits his work to less than 30 hours a week because any more would make him eligible for company-provided health insurance.

"I'm so sick of news about the recovery," said Linehan, who has some college and technical-school training.

The latest Labor Department report shows there are nearly 9 million people such as Linehan who want full-time jobs but can't find them. In some cases, their formerly full-time employers have reduced their hours because of a lack of business.

www.lansingstatejournal.com/article/20100912/NEWS03/9120501/For-many-working-just-isn-t-enough

Poverty Rate Expected to Increase Dramatically

The number of people in the U.S. who are in poverty is on track for a record increase on President Barack Obama's watch, with the ranks of working-age poor approaching 1960s levels that led to the national war on poverty.

Census figures for 2009 — the recession-ravaged first year of the Democrat's presidency — are to be released in the coming week, and demographers expect grim findings...

Interviews with six demographers who closely track poverty trends found wide consensus that 2009 figures are likely to show a significant rate increase to the range of 14.7 percent to 15 percent.

Should those estimates hold true, some 45 million people in this country, or more than 1 in 7, were poor last year. It would be the highest single-year increase since the government began calculating poverty figures in 1959. The previous high was in 1980 when the rate jumped 1.3 percentage points to 13 percent during the energy crisis.

Among the 18-64 working-age population, the demographers expect a rise beyond 12.4 percent, up from 11.7 percent. That would make it the highest since at least 1965, when another Democratic president, Lyndon B. Johnson, launched the war on poverty that expanded the federal government's role in social welfare programs from education to health care.

news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100911/ap_on_bi_ge/us_poverty_in_america

New thrift store in Parchment benefits those with disabilities

A new thrift store on Riverview Drive is offering clothing and household items for sale while also benefiting a nonprofit ministry that serves adults with developmental disabilities. The organization benefited is Self-Help Alternative Living Opportunities of Michigan, or SHALOM. SHALOM provides individual and group living opportunities in Parchment and Cooper Township for adults with developmental disabilities.

The store is open from 9am to 3pm Fridays and Saturdays and sells clothing, shoes, jewelry, small furniture, household goods, sports equipment, books, electronics and multitude of other items.

For more about the store visit: http://www.mlive.com/business/west-michigan/index.ssf/2010/09/new_thrift_store_in_parchment.html

Labor Day 2010: Too Many Unemployed (Especially People of Color) and Too Many Others Working for Meager Wages

An editorial column from the Benton Harbor Herald Palladium:

Recently, I read some good economic news. For the month of July, Michigan led the nation in job creation. Nearly 27,000 jobs were created in our state, with many of them in manufacturing, which has suffered inordinate job loss over a decade. Michigan has been in recession for most of the 21st century.

One month of modest employment gains is not a trend. Still, isn't it great to read that Michigan lead the nation in job growth, even if only for one month? Let's hope it is the beginning of Michigan's turnaround. Many of our neighbors are still hurting.

In their annual Labor Day report, the Michigan League for Human Services lists a litany of Michigan's economic woes:

The unemployment rate in Michigan has been near 13 or 14 percent during all of 2009-2010. The last time that unemployment was higher in Michigan was in 1983-1984. Those years weren't much fun in our state, even if the Detroit Tigers won the World Series and Cyndi Lauper sang to us that "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun." (For the record, I moved to Virginia from 1983-1985 partially because of the dearth of Michigan jobs.)

heraldpalladium.com/articles/2010/09/08/opinion/editorials/1885171.txt

Cass County's Annual Senior Health Fair

Cass County Council on Aging will have its annual Senior Health Fair Friday, Sept. 10, from 8 a.m. until noon.

The event provides free health screenings and information, plus a healthy breakfast sponsored by Borgess-Lee Memorial Hospital.

www.dowagiacnews.com/2010/09/07/coa-senior-health-fair-friday-morning-sept-10/

Zombies Invade Lansing (and Raise Food & Funds for Area Food Banks)

Zombies in Lansing recently held a fun walk for Lansing area food banks. Fun idea for a fund raiser! Canned goods and cash were collected to battle hunger:

We're Against Tax Cuts that Benefit Working Poor, But For the Tax Cuts for the Wealthy?

Tax legislation can get pretty arcane, pretty fast. Honestly, how many of you think about income taxes more than once a year (normally, when you are frantically trying to pull together a year's worth of receipts and pay stubs sometime between January and April 15)?

There is a philosophical debate going on now in the halls of Congress.

It goes like this:

We can't afford to continue the expansion of the earned income tax credit that was passed last year. Why? Because of the deficit.

We can't afford NOT to continue the tax cuts for the affluent passed in 2001. Why? Because of the economy.

Get it. The affluent (those who make more than $200,000 per year for singles, $250,000 per year for couples) need a tax cut because, well if we don't give them one, the economy will never come out of the toilet. If we extend the earned income tax credit for those who make between $3,000 and $12,500 or for those who have more than two children, we can't afford it. It will bankrupt the country. (The earned income credit only pertains to those families who make less than $48,000 per year.)

"But I don't want to go among mad people," Alice remarked.

"Oh, you can't help that," said the Cat. "We're all mad here. I'm mad. You're mad."

"How do you know I'm mad?" said Alice.

"You must be," said the Cat, "or you wouldn't have come here."

An article about the proposed extension of the earned income credit can be found in today's GR Press:

www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2010/09/should_congress_make_permanent.html

It is an election year. Information about contacting your local congressman can be found at:

Fred Upton (6th district including Kalamazoo, Berrien & Cass Counties, Three Rivers, cities of South Haven, Allegan, and Wayland:

upton.house.gov/Contact/default.aspx

Pete Hoekstra (2nd district including Saugatuck and points north along lake shore):

hoekstra.house.gov/Contact/

Mark Schauer (7th district including Battle Creek, Marshall, Albion, & Coldwater):

schauer.house.gov/Contact/

P.S. The Michigan League for Human Services has a handy fact sheet on the tax cuts that benefit the working poor at:

www.milhs.org/Media/EDocs/FactSheetRefundTaxCredits810.pdf

Michigan State Students Give Back to Needy Children

Recently, Michigan State University students collected a bus load of school supplies for needy children in the Lansing area.

Go Green! Go White!

Are there any Wolverine (or Bronco, Chippewa, Grand Valley Lakers, or other college fans) out there listening? Your turn to step up to the plate for poor kids.

www.lansingstatejournal.com/article/20100903/NEWS06/9030338/MSU-students-staff-help-distribute-school-supplies-food-to-those-in-need

Book drive helps people in homeless shelters throughout Kalamazoo County

We all go through intense experiences, struggles and a variety of challenges throughout our lives. Imagine doing so without a place to call home, or the without the support of loved ones who understand your condition. This is the reality of many homeless residents who exist in our communities.

Local non-profit organization Take Life By The Page is taking donations of reading and writing materials such as books, notebooks, and journals for children and adults living in homeless shelters throughout Kalamazoo County. The intent of these donations is to promote healthier living and provide educational opportunities for those in shelters.

One of my professors at GVSU once told our class about the life of one his mentors, Lee Thayer, who taught his class while he was a graduate student. Thayer liked to tell his class, "All of my best friends all dead." He would then pause to enhance the effect. The class would look at him with shock and sadness. No one ever knew what to say. Then Thayer would quickly add, "They're all books!"

You never know what will influence a person's life. I can attest to several books that have made a substantial difference in the way I approach my life. It's important we enrich the lives of those who need our support the most.

Anyone is welcome to bring used or new books, new notebooks or journals, and writing supplies to the Parkview Hills Clubhouse at 3707 Greenleaf Circle, Kalamazoo. There are also donation drop boxes available at Fifth Third Bank, 3311 Greenleaf Blvd., and at Vallar Salon, 1112 E. Centre Ave., Portage.

For more information, call Ashley McIntyre at 269-760-7899.

Read the full article: http://www.mlive.com/living/kalamazoo/index.ssf/2010/09/book_drive_helps_people_in_hom.html

Kalamazoo's Gryphon Place turns 40: Agency known for suicide prevention offers much more

Kalamazoo's Gryphon Place was founded in 1970 as a substance abuse prevention drop-in center, but has evolved into much more. In that era, call center workers fielded 3,000 or 4,000 calls a year. By comparison, the 211/HELP line received 64,455 calls between October 2008 and September 2009, and is projected to handle 91,000 this year.

The organization has expanded from simply substance abuse and suicide prevention to a "one-stop reference guide for people with a range of health or human services needs."

Like other community agencies, Gryphon Place has been hard hit by the economic downturn, according to Pell. Local funding has fallen by $100,00, according to the agency’s 2009 annual report, at a time when the need for services has increased.

Though suicide-related calls have remained steady, calls about basic needs, such as people seeking help with utility shut-offs, evictions, foreclosures, hunger and homelessness, increased by 10 percent two years ago, by 11 percent last year, and 10 percent this year.

The high numbers, says Pell, reflect many “newly poor” in the community, people who always had jobs, homes and food until recently, but now find themselves in dire financial trouble. These people, he said, “don’t understand the system, they’re embarrassed and demoralized, and they don’t like asking for help.”

For people in poverty, there is no "map" or "guide" of how reach or access services. Many people rely on service referral organizations such as Gryphon Place to direct them to the correct organizations. Without them, they would be forced to call and/or visit every organization until they filled the right need. To say that this service is crucial would be an understatement.

Happy 40th birthday Gryphon place!

Read the Full Article: http://www.mlive.com/living/kalamazoo/index.ssf/2010/08/kalamazoos_gryphon_place_turns.html