% >> Colin Gillis: THANK YOU.
% >> Frederica Freyberg: EVERY
% YEAR FOR LABOR DAY, THE CENTER
% ON WISCONSIN STRATEGY OR COWS AT
% UW MADISON RELEASES ITS STATE OF
% WORKING WISCONSIN.
% PINPOINTING WHAT IS GOING ON IN
% THE STATE LABOR MARKET.
% ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR OF COWS, AN
% ECONOMIST, LAURA DRESSER IS HERE
% WITH MORE ON THE REPORT.
% HI, LAURA.
% >> Laura Dresser: HI.
% >> Frederica Freyberg: NEW U.S.
% JOB NUMBERS CAME OUT TODAY
% SHOWING JOB, SLOWING OF JOB
% GROWTH, WOULD YOU EXPECT THAT IN
% WISCONSIN AS WELL?
% EVEN IF ONE OF YOUR KEY FINDINGS
% IS THE GREAT RESIGNATION, AT
% LEAST IN THIS STATE IS A MYTH?
% >> Laura Dresser: YEAH, I THINK
% WE HAVE SEEN 2022 HAS BEEN
% DEFINED, I THINK, BY STEADY JOB
% GROWTH AT THE NATIONAL LEVEL.
% A LITTLE LESS ROBUST JOB GROWTH
% IN WISCONSIN.
% I THINK PEOPLE ARE RELIEVED TO
% SEE THAT 300,000 NATIONAL
% NUMBER.
% WHICH IS SLOWER THAN THE
% PROCEEDING MONTHS BUT IS STILL
% SOLID LABOR-MARKET GROWTH.
% >> Frederica Freyberg: LET'S GO
% BACK TO THAT MYTH YOU CALL THE
% GREAT RESIGNATION IN WISCONSIN.
% WHY IS IT A MYTH?
% >> Laura Dresser: I THINK PEOPLE
% HAVE A SENSE, THE STORIES FROM
% ABOUT A YEAR AGO GAVE PEOPLE A
% SENSE THAT THERE WERE A LOT OF
% PEOPLE THAT WERE LIKE, TAKE THIS
% JOB AND I'M GOING TO GO LIVE ON
% THE VAN LIFE AND DEVELOP AN
% INSTAGRAM FOLLOWING GROUP OR
% WHATEVER.%THERE WAS A LOT OF
RETREAT FROM
% WORK.
% BUT WHAT THERE WAS, ACTUALLY,
% AND IS CLEAR IN THE DATA, THAT
% PEOPLE REALLY SAW OPPORTUNITY
% AND THEY TOOK IT.
% THEY LEFT JOBS.
% AND THEY'VE MOVED UP AND THEY'VE
% MOVED ON.
% BUT WE HAVE MORE PEOPLE WORKING
% IN THE STATE TODAY THAN WE DID
% THE PERCENTAGE, THE MOST THAT
% WE'VE EVER HAD PEOPLE WORKING IN
% THE STATE IN MAY THIS YEAR.
% WELL OVER 3 MILLION.
% AND WE HAVE A HIGHER LABOR FORCE
% PARTICIPATION RATE TODAY THAN WE
% DID FEBRUARY 2020 COMING INTO
% THE PANDEMIC.
% AND SO ON THESE MEASURES, PEOPLE
% ARE WORKING.
% >> Frederica Freyberg: BUT WHAT
% EXPLAINS THEM?
% SHORTAGES OF WORKERERS IN
% RESTAURANTS AND OTHER SERVICE
% INDUSTRY THAT WE HEAR ABOUT ALL
% THE TIME?
% >> Laura Dresser: WE CAN SEE HOW
% TIGHT THE LABOR MARKET IS.
% HOW MUCH DEMAND THERE IS FOR
% WORKERS.%AND I THINK WHAT WE
SEE IS
% WORKERS ARE ABLE TO SEE THAT
% OPPORTUNITY AND MAKE SOMETHING
% OF THAT OPPORTUNITY.
% EITHER BY LEAVING AND GOING TO
% GET A NEW JOB OR STAYING ON THE
% JOB THEY HAVE AND IMPROVING IT
% BY ASKING FOR HIGHER WAGES.
% BUT IT MEANS THAT THE LOWER WAGE
% INDUSTRIES, ESPECIALLY, HAVE
% EVIDENT JOB OPENINGS.
% AND I THINK PEOPLE FOUND WORK
% OTHER PLACES AND THAT MEANS THAT
% RESTAURANTS ARE THINKING ABOUT
% HOW THEY RESTRUCTURE THAT WORK
% TO MAKE IT APPEALING.
% >> Frederica Freyberg: SO YOU
% ALSO SHOW THAT WAGES ARE UP IN
% WISCONSIN.
% UP AT HISTORIC LEVELS.
% WHAT'S THAT ABOUT?
% >> Laura Dresser: YEAH, I THINK
% WE HAVE SEEN PRETTY SOLID WAGE
% GROWTH FROM 2018 TO 2021.
% OUR WAGE DATA IS ALWAYS
% INFLATION ADJUSTED.
% SO EXPRESSED IN CURRENT DOLLARS.
% NEXT YEAR I THINK INFLATION WILL
% CHANGE THE PICTURE
% SUBSTANTIALLY.%BUT COMING INT
O 2021, WHICH IS
% THE MOST RECENT AVAILABLE, WE
% ARE UP ABOUT $21.50 AN HOUR
% WHICH IS THE MEDIAN WAGE.
% WHICH IS $2 UP FROM 2018 AND
% $1.50 AN HOUR.
% THAT KIND OF GROWTH WE HAVEN'T
% SEEN SINCE THE LATE '90s.
% >> Frederica Freyberg: I'M NOT
% SURE WE HAVE THE TIME TO TALK
% ABOUT IT HERE, BUT THERE ARE
% DISPARITIES IN THAT.
% >> Laura Dresser: ABSOLUTELY.
% AND ALWAYS IN THIS ECONOMY.
% EVEN WHEN THERE IS GOOD NEWS.
% GOOD NEWS ISN'T ALWAYS BROADLY
% SHARED.
% AND THAT IS DEFINITELY, YOU CAN
% FIND THAT ON THE REPORT.
% >> Frederica Freyberg: THE
% NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
% REPORTS A 56% INCREASE IN
% PETITIONS FOR UNION ELECTIONS.
% HOW IS THE TIGHT LABOR MARKET
% CHANGED LABOR ORGANIZING IN
% WISCONSIN?
% WE JUST SPOKE WITH A MEMBER OF
% THE NURSES UNION AT UW HOSPITAL.
% HOW IS THAT CHANGING?
% >> Laura Dresser: I THINK THAT
% WHAT I THINK OF THE NATIONAL
% LABOR RELATIONS DATA IS THE KIND
% OF MOST FORMAL, MOST ORGANIZED
% VERSION OF SEEING WHAT WORKERS
% ARE DOING WITH WORK.
% AND I THINK THE WAGE DATA AND
% THE TURNOVER DATA AND THE JOB
% OPENINGS REALLY SHOWS THAT
% WORKERS SEE OPPORTUNITY RIGHT
% NOW AND IN INDIVIDUAL AND
% COLLECTIVE WAYS, YOU KNOW, AND
% FORMAL AND INFORMAL WAYS THEY
% ARE ASKING FOR MORE.
% AND THE MOST COLLECTIVE AND
% FORMAL WAY IS TO MOVE TO A
% PROCESS AND THAT IS WHAT WE SEE
% MORE OF IN THE STATE AS WELL.