During the 20th century there has been a widespread pattern of language shift among the indigenous communities of the United States and Canada. The language-of-work hypothesis posits that if the national language is used as the language of work for virtually all jobs in a minority-language community, the national language will, within a few…

This paper explores the development of a set of indicators devoted exclusively to the school to work transition. The indicators described are directed at monitoring a geographical area as a whole, whether it is the nation, state, or a local community. Developing a set of indicators is linked to making judgments about the impact we expect new…

This paper examines patterns of change in the number of Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) recipients in nonmetropolitan and metropolitan Texas counties, 1980-1990. Specifically, the paper analyzes how changes in AFDC enrollment can be explained by demographic and socioeconomic characteristics and the extent to which factors explaining…

The high poverty rate (13.8 percent) among Nebraska's children is cause for concern, since there is strong evidence that poverty can hinder development and adversely affect children's ability to become productive adults. It is commonly assumed that poor children live in families where parents could work but do not. Yet in Nebraska, of poor…

Economic theory suggests that when the reduction in earnings from dropping out of school is minimal, dropout rates will be high. As earnings loss for dropouts grows, however, the dropout rate should decrease. This chapter examines whether these predicted effects actually occur by looking at changes in dropout rates in Kentucky in the 1970s and…

This report draws on data from the 1997 Census of Agriculture and the 1998 Current Population Survey earnings microdata file to present information on the patterns of farm labor use and the demographic and employment characteristics of hired farmworkers in the United States. Approximately 875,000 persons 15 years of age and older did hired…

Research was conducted in Europe to determine the following: (1) the current situation in the chemicals industry in regard to transparency, recognition, and transfer of qualifications; (2) the obstacles to transparency and recognition of qualifications in the industry; and (3) the key areas for future action and possible measures to promote…

This report examines the civil consequences of criminal records on ex-offender parents and their long-term ability to reintegrate into the community, resume parental responsibilities, and be productive members of the society. Many of the barriers described in this report are the results of policies intended to reduce crime, yet they have the…

In the six-state region of Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota, 182 counties have been identified as having an agriculturally based economy. Characteristics of these counties have been identified using data from the U.S. Census and the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. Agriculturally based counties have lost…

The Project Profile is a biannual document providing a series of comparative reports about student demographics and related characteristics at the Pennsylvania College of Technology. Data were collected from student admissions applications and questionnaires for the fall semesters from 1995 to 1999, providing longitudinal information on several…

In 1998, the Illinois statewide coalition Work, Welfare and Families, in partnership with the Chicago Urban League, undertook a study to assess the effects of welfare reform on low-income families and children across Illinois. The findings were derived from three sources: a self-administered survey of 2,166 low-income clients of Illinois social…

A large-scale evaluation was conducted of Jobs-First GAIN, a strongly employment-focused mandatory welfare-to-work program. Its main features were an unusually intensive program orientation; high quality job clubs; job development activities; strong encouragement to take entry-level jobs and combine work and welfare in the short-term; and…

This factsheet provides information about young people from ethnic minorities in Britain. In spring 1997, 48% of the ethnic minority population of Britain was under 24 years of age, in comparison with 31% of the White population. Twenty-two percent of the ethnic minority population was of compulsory school age, compared with 14% of the White…

With more mothers in the work force and greater stresses created by competing demands of work and home, nonstandard work arrangements (NSWAs), which include temporary help agency work, on-call work, day labor, contract work, independent contracting, self-employment, and part-time work, have been suggested as a remedy for this conflict. For the…

Nonstandard work arrangements (independent contracting, working for a temporary help agency, contract or on-call work, day labor, self-employment, and regular part-time employment) are growing more common in the United States. In 1995, more than 29 percent of all jobs were in nonstandard work arrangements. A study of these jobs and the…