A. The birth of Labor Day
B. Overtime for everyone?

A. The union view: Europe v. the U.S.
B. View from the U.K.
C. Cultural differences toward weekends and travel
D. An international co-op's experience
E. Labor leadership depends on integration of cultures

A. More to life than work
B. Working for the little guys has advantages
C. A better deal
D. Productivity doesn't necessarily equal more free time
E. Bottom-rung jobs still hard to fill
F. High-tech shortages continue
G. Don't forget the underworked

A. Predictions for the next decade
B. Overworked Americans: a solution
C. Will fewer hours ever fly? A second opinion
D. Union influence on Capitol Hill
E. The future impact of robotics

The idea for a U.S. Labor Day is credited to Peter McGuire, a carpenter's union leader who suggested a celebration be held to honor workers in 1882. A workers' parade in New York City on Sept. 5, 1882, carried out his concept. The idea for a Labor Day spread rapidly. Congress created the national holiday in 1894. "Symbolically, the idea behind the origins of Labor Day is that workers are as important as management, business owners and business," said Cebula. contact: 513-745-5654

B. OVERTIME FOR EVERYONE?
UC sociologist David J. Maume Jr. says eliminating the exemption for salaried workers from the Fair Labor Standards Act could ease the burden on overworked Americans. The law mandates time-and-a-half for hourly workers who work more than 40 hours a week. When the Fair Labor Standards Act was approved in the 1930s, only 16 percent of the U.S. workforce was exempt from the overtime requirement. Today 40 percent of American workers are exempt. "Obviously this has taken place with the decline of blue collar jobs," said Maume, director of the UC Kunz Center for the Study of Work & Family. "But it also means a lot of American workers are required to work as much as their employer demands without receiving extra compensation." contact: 513-556-4713

2. LABOR DIFFERENCES AROUND THE WORLD
A. UNION VIEWS: EUROPE VS. THE U.S.
UC associate professor of management Rajan Kamath, who studies international competitiveness, believes American labor unions could benefit if they became more like their European counterparts. "In places like Holland and Germany, the union means something entirely different than it does here," Kamath says. "They are a very strong part of the work environment. They have made the transition from the shop floor to the board room, and now they have a very strong tradition of labor participation in company corporate management."

The European model has already gained a foothold in some U.S. industries. Northwest Airlines was forced to give 30 percent of its equity to its pilots' union to guarantee its survival. But bustling industries, such as high-tech, aren't likely to see much in the way of unionization. "None of those jobs are union jobs. They're all white-collar jobs, and they all have the stock option bug," Kamath says. "Each guy working there has a little piece of paper that every morning represents tens of thousands of dollars more or less than the previous day, depending on what the market does." contact: 513-556-7132

B. VIEW FROM THE UK
Renee Binyon, founder of INCONET Limited, a firm in the United Kingdom which provides freelance management and training, says the concept of a "job for life" is dimming. The clear upward trend is toward freelance, contract and portfolio work. Binyon cited the following figures: In the United Kingdom, 90 percent of workplaces subcontract one or more services, and 40 percent use fixed-term contract employees. Thirteen percent use freelance workers. If the trend continues, that means that over 5 million Britains could embark on independent professional careers in the next 5 years. Across Europe, 9 million people now run companies from home compared with 2 million in 1997.

The challenges these workers face are the same: isolation. In a survey carried out by INCONET.com, 50 percent of independent consultants and trainers want more contact with others to share ideas and innovations, form alliances and to gain support. Many have contact with clients but lack peer support. A related challenge for the self-employed: keeping up with trends in their field. "The human touch is vital for freelancers even while technology is the engine driving flexibility and cost-effectiveness," said Binyon. contact via Kate Rowland, 011-44-1761-463371; press@inconet.com

C. CULTURAL DIFFERENCES TOWARD WEEKENDS AND TRAVEL
Between her personal and professional life, Professor Urmila Ghia has seen first-hand the cultural differences which affect workers around the world. "In India, working a half day on Saturday is typical in most companies and businesses," said Ghia. In Germany, there is a much different approach toward extra work and its impact on families. "When employees have to be out of town for professional travel, not only is their travel cost covered, but the employee is paid at 150 percent," said Ghia. She explained that families typically undergo a hardship while the employee is away, and often encounter additional costs during the period of absence. "For example, the children miss their father, and this places some burden on the mother, or vice versa." contact: 513-556-4612

D. AN INTERNATIONAL CO-OP'S EXPERIENCE
Andrea Miller, a 22-year-old UC co-op student from Castalia, Ohio, has been gaining exposure to a work culture that is more flexible and less overtime-oriented than the United States. She is on assignment working for Adam Opel AG -- InternationalTechnical Development Center in Russelsheim, Germany through UC's International Co-op Program from March to September 2000. Staff members work either 35-hour or 40-hour weeks, depending on their contracts. Miller has been impressed with the vacation and flex-time policies she sees in the German workplace.

"Employees have 30 days vacation (six weeks). Flex-time is available if someone wants to take an afternoon or a couple of days off. As a 'Praktikant' (student co-op), I have two days vacation per month." She adds, "The German work ethic is much more laid back. I don't at all mean to say that they fall behind in work or don't do a good job. It's just a different atmosphere. German workers are much less apt to work overtime on the same scale that we do in the U.S. They value their free time in the evenings and on the weekends." contact: (011) 49-6142-762-318; andrea.miller@de.opel.com

E. LABOR LEADERSHIP DEPENDS ON INTEGRATION OF CULTURES
UC Professor Estela Matriano is international executive director of the World Council for Curriculum and Instruction (WCCI), a nongovernmental organization of the United Nations. She has worked with companies such as Chiquita International Company and others to provide diversity training and education on multicultural issues. Matriano says Americans need to learn how to interact with people in the workplace who speak different languages and who come from different cultural backgrounds.

"We have an increasing number of Hispanic/Latino workers in the restaurant industry in Cincinnati. Sometimes, we may think they're impolite because they don't respond to a request, but it's because they don't speak English. I know someone who was hired to act as an interpreter. This kind of capability is becoming necessary in the labor market."

"Georgetown, Kentucky was a monocultural city when the Toyota plant was built in 1985. The Georgetown folks at Toyota contacted Travelers Aid International Institute in the '80s about a training course on Japanese culture and language. Now, Georgetown is an active and vibrant community. You never know what can happen in terms of globalization." contact: 513-556-3573

3. AMERICA'S LABOR MARKET TODAY
A . MORE TO LIFE THAN WORK
"We need to find something we can do above and beyond our pay jobs, something more rewarding. We need to think of creating meaningful leisure for ourselves and not invest so much time and energy and spirit into our paid jobs," says Joanne Bridgett Ciulla, author of "The Working Life: The Promise and Betrayal of Modern Work."

Ciulla is Coston Family Chair in Leadership and Ethics at the University of Richmond. In her latest book, Ciulla argues that work promises more than it can deliver. "Americans define themselves through their jobs, which can be devastating in today's changing workplace. When large corporations downsized in the mid '90s, upper middle class employees lost their jobs in droves. These were people who always had job security and who worked for good companies like AT&T and Xerox. They put their whole lives into the organization. Their friends were their coworkers. Unemployment was a devastating social death for them." contact: 804-320-2525

B. WORKING FOR THE LITTLE GUYS HAS ADVANTAGES
For a long time, economists trivialized the impact of small businesses on economic growth. In fact, small, entrepreneurial and family businesses have been the engine of U.S. economic growth and promise to continue to be a significant source of jobs, innovation and economic expansion, according to Charles H. Matthews, UC associate professor of management and director of UC's Small Business Institute. "The explosive growth in e-commerce has fueled the need for more employees in both new and old firms," Matthews says. Small companies also offer advantages to their workers, including more relaxed work environments, faster decision-making, greater opportunity and the potential for profit-sharing as the firm grows. contact: 513-556-7123

C. A BETTER DEAL
The success of the labor movement and the strong economy have combined to create much better working conditions for most Americans. That includes a feeling for workers of greater fairness. Suzanne Masterson, a UC assistant professor of management, researches the subject of fairness in the workplace. Masterson says that labor unions have become less of a presence at companies as treatment towards workers becomes more fair, a trend reinforced by government action through regulatory agencies like OSHA. Also, employees are empowered by the very strong labor market, and can easily leave unfair employment situations for more favorable ones.

A heightened sense of fairness in the workplace may benefit organizations as well. "Recent research suggests that by training managers to be more fair, companies cut down on the incidents of employee theft," Masterson says. "If organizations are being forced to be more fair, there's also something in it for them. It can come back and affect their bottom line." contact: 513-556-7125

D. PRODUCTIVITY DOESN'T NECESSARILY EQUAL MORE FREE TIME
One of Alan Greenspan's favorite measures of U.S. economic health is the labor productivity rate. Workers produce more as it rises, yet at the same time, it seems workers are having to work more and more hours. Why? UC professor of economics Charles Berry says it's not a cause-and-effect relationship. "Workers are more productive, meaning the value of their work per hour goes up, but they may also be choosing to work more to earn a higher income. It's their choice," Berry says. As a sidelight, Berry agrees that most of the gains have come through improved technology. In the 10th year of economic expansion, aren't we nearing a point of diminishing returns from those kinds of gains? "It hasn't happened yet and may not for a while," Berry says. "If you go back to other (technological) advances, it often takes 30 years or more for their effect to diminish, so we're still at the early end of this." contact: 513-556-2624

E. BOTTOM-RUNG JOBS STILL HARD TO FILL
"On the bottom end of the job scale, there are tons of jobs available. High school students can find jobs if they're willing to work," says UC Business Technologies Professor Sandy Kahn. Kahn says a common frustration for Greater Cincinnati employers is that workers aren't prepared to do the job. "There's a real demand for manpower, a lot of physical laborworkers needed to wait on people and workers needed to cook the food. They need to know how to come to work and make a commitment to the work."

Kahn says he's beginning to view the fast food industry as a training ground for skilled workers, with benefits that never were available for the teens who flipped burgers a generation ago. "Companies like McDonald's and Wendy's are offering bonuses to workers who can talk a friend into joining the staff. They're willing to train young employees for management positions while they provide them with traditional fringe benefits like vacations, medical coverage and investment opportunities." contact: 513-556-0371

F. HIGH-TECH ALSO SUFFERING SHORTAGES
UC Business Technologies Professor Sanford Kahn says labor shortages in the Midwest affect employers searching for skilled workers. "In terms of high-tech areas, there's a real shortage. You can't just hire someone off the street. There's a real shortage of nurses, and there simply are not enough people available with the skills that employers need. Clerical jobs have changed to high-tech jobs, but they're high-tech jobs at low pay, such as data entry. Jobs in construction management are unbelievable in terms of growth." contact: 513-556-0371

G. DON'T FORGET THE UNDERWORKED
While many Americans are feeling overworked, there is a significant minority at the other end of the spectrum who would like to work more but can't find full-time jobs, emphasizes UC sociologist David J. Maume Jr., director of the Kunz Center for the Study of Work & Family. "There is a segment of the U.S. workforce that is underworked, and these are people who have gotten downsized to part-time positions as employers have cut back to save on the expenses of benefits," he says. About 10-15 percent of the labor force are working part-time but would like full-time jobs. "We have seen growth at both ends of the tails -- more overworked Americans but also more underworked." contact: 513-556-4713

4.WHAT'S AHEAD FOR WORKERS AND UNIONS
A. PREDICTIONS FOR THE NEXT DECADE
Kristin Accipiter, media affairs manager for the Society for Human Resource Management, says her organization predicts:

1.) An even tighter labor market starting in 2010 when Baby Boomers begin an exodus out of the labor market. With fewer younger workers to replace the departing Boomers, employers will seek to retain older workers rather than retire them.

2.) More employers will offer eldercare benefits for middle-aged workers with elderly parents.

3.) Employers will lengthen the retirement age to accommodate healthier older workers who choose not to retire.

4.) America's youth culture will be replaced by a "gray" culture, and older workers will be greatly valued.

One society survey found that 97 percent of HR professionals believe that older workers are reliable and thorough in their work; 81 percent believe that older workers are interested in learning new tasks; and 94 percent report that older workers do not miss time from work because of health problems. contact: 703-535-6047; http://www.shrm.org

B. OVERWORKED AMERICANS: A SOLUTION
If the French can shorten their work week to 35 hours without sacrificing pay and benefits, why can't the U.S. do the same? UC sociologist David J. Maume Jr., director of the Kunz Center for the Study of Work & Family thinks that the day may come sooner than you imagine -- within the next 20 years. "Remember that the eight-hour day was considered unlikely in the time of our grandparents, too. I don't see a shorter work week coming this year or next year or even under the next president, but I think there may be some serious discussion not too far into the future. Whenever we have cut back the work week, employers have been able to increase productivity through technological innovation. This can happen again." contact: 513-556-4713

C. WILL FEWER HOURS EVER FLY? A SECOND OPINION
It's been more than 60 years since Congress passed a law to protect American workers from long work hours and established the eight-hour work day/40-hour work week with time-and-a-half for overtime. While much of the rest of the industrialized world, particularly Europe, Canada and Australia, has long worked under a 35-hour work week standard, it is unlikely that U.S. businesses will ever follow suit, says Jim Cebula, a labor historian at the UC's Raymond Walters College. Reducing work hours has not been seriously discussed since the 1970s, he says. "The closest thing we have is flex time, which has become more common." contact: 513-745-5654

D. UNION INFLUENCE ON CAPITOL HILL
Labor unions have long been cited as one of the most powerful lobbying groups working the Congressional ranks. But UC assistant professor of political science Carl Rhodes says labor's biggest power comes at the ballot box, not through lobbying campaigns. "What really changes is who is in control of Congress," Rhodes says. "You may be getting the same sit-down sessions (with Congress members) that you've always gotten, but it's not going to have as much impact if you're not having them with the party in control." contact: 513-556-3394

E. THE FUTURE IMPACT OF ROBOTICS
Ernie Hall, director of the UC Center for Robotics Research, said robots have made a billion dollar impact on the U.S. economy, but that's only the beginning. "Today's robotic machines are faster, cheaper, more reliable and safer," said Hall. "The knowledge base is increasing. More attention is being given by industry to robots, vision and motion controls. New areas of usage are emerging for service robots, remote manipulators and automated guided vehicles." Feasibility studies show decreasing costs for robots and healthy rates of return for a variety of robotic applications. However, the road from inspiration to successful application can be long and difficult. "A greater emphasis on 'mechatronics' is needed in our universities. More cooperation between government, industry and universities is needed to speed the development of intelligent robots that will benefit industry and society." On the homefront, Hall noted robot lawn mowers are now available for under $800. contact: 513-556-2730



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