Journalists at Fairfax Media have gone on a 36-hour strike over job outsourcing to New Zealand. Fairfax Media is the second largest publishing company in Australia, and is accused of making “easy instead of smart” decisions about cost-cutting.

This strike affects journalist staff in both print and online sections of several papers including The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald, The Australian Financial Review, The Sunday Age, The Sun Herald, Newcastle Herald, and Wollongong’s Ilawarra Mercury.

The strike began at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday evening with staff walking out after hundreds of journalists met with media union officials from the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance (MEAA) that same day.

The cost-cutting, outsourcing plan is causing fear in the journalists for their job safety and will result in 66 jobs lost due to the relocation of the editorial staff.

Rallies were held May 31 in Australia by the striking journalists and the MEAA. Louise Connor, MEAA Victorian secretary, stood outside Fairfax’s Melbourne offices on Thursday with around 100 journalists.

“Our grave concern is that this company makes the easy decisions to cut costs instead of making the smart decisions to move this company into the new era,” Ms. Connor told reporters.

“This is a very dangerous step for Fairfax to be taking. There has been no experience in Australia of companies making the decision to offshore such a central part of the newspaper and this can only destroy the vital nexus between the newsroom and the community. Sub-editors are journalists and the heart of the newsroom.

They should always be embedded in the community to enable the newspaper to tell the local story accurately.” said Chris Warren, MEAA federal secretary. The MEAA said the outsourcing is just Fairfax’s way to finding cheap cuts in journalism.

The striking journalists risk the chance of being fined. To them, it is definitely worth it.

“We don’t think we’ll be fined. We understand the risk that we took in walking out, but there’s frustration at the decision to outsource jobs,” said Ben Schneiders, a journalist at The Age.

Fairfax Media management has expressed disappointment at the journalists’ strike action, but says the changes will put the company in a better position to take advantage of the numerous opportunities in digital media.

Senior staff and sub-editors from the involved newspapers are going to negotiate with Fairfax management over the next few days to find an alternative solution, the MEAA says.

The strike is due to end Friday morning.

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Miami,U.S.A. – When twenty-four renowned authors come together to record personal anecdotes on migration and the United States, the result is an anthology as rich and colorful as the experiences that transpire in or derive from the “great country up north.” Sam no es mi tio, published by Alfaguara.

Each Hispanic has a story, personal or collective, real or imaginary, to tell concerning the United States. At one point in our lives, one way or another, we have all crossed paths with the “North.” For this reason, the twenty-four writers in this unique anthology set out to portray America-The Americas, their Americas.

As Ailen El-Kadi, who along with Diego Fonseca edited this anthology, says “We wanted confessions, we wanted stories that were personal, stories that weren’t that easy to tell. And what did we find? We found that behind the Unites States and behind every person passing through US customs a host of fantasies exist. Our chroniclers, like millions of others,  came face to face with reality when they reached the North.

Things are not as you imagine they would be, whether for someone shopping in Miami or going to University, or for those who leave their countries, families, jobs, and loved ones behind in search of a better life or a decent wage. In Sam no es mi tio readers will find just that, diverse and distinct stories from all types of people, confessions from those who have dared to reveal the myths that Latin Americans have been piling up for years regarding the United States.”

These chronicles take the reader through fascinating paths, they narrate encounters, miss-encounters, disappointments, happiness, triumphs, and reality. “The book’s central question is: how would you describe, today, the relationship between Latin Americans and the United States?,” says Diego Fonseca, co-editor of the book. “Giving a single absolute explanation to this discussion is impossible.

This group of texts fulfills the task of a chronicle: an in-depth exploration of stories that are testimony to a much broader phenomena.” And so, these accounts are the echo of migrants who no longer belong to one place but are now a part of them all.

Authors included in the anthology: Daniel Alarcon, Jon Lee Anderson, Joaquin Botero, Joao Paulo Cuenca, Andre De Leones, Aileen El-Kadi, Gabriela Esquivada, Diego Fonseca, Eduardo Halfon, Yuri Herrera, Hernan Iglesias Illa, Andrea Jeftanovic, Camilo Jimenez, Juan Pablo Meneses, Edmundo Paz Soldan, Claudia Pineiro, Santiago Roncagliolo, Carola Saavedra, Ilan Stavans, Wilbert Torre, Eloy Urroz, and Jorge Volpi.

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The economic crisis has raised unemployment, universities have reduced their available spots, and tuition is becoming inaccessible to the poor and middle class. So, is a college education really worth it?

Students must be certain that they want to go to a college these days. Though motivations vary – pressure from home, aggressive marketing, or social tendencies in the political arena – a university education is considered a good investment because higher pay has traditionally followed a higher education. However, many students argue that their decision is not only about money and that they see the value of a college education as a way to expand their knowledge and learn independence.

Students have to learn the hard lesson that going to a university is not enough. You also have to study the right subjects, not just your preferences. This way, you will have business contacts for when you graduate. Many students try to avoid the toughest subjects, such as math and chemistry, and instead, they choose the “easy” or ” fun” ones. They waste their time by choosing fields in the humanities that give little prospect of landing a job.

For instance, some students receive futile degrees in media, photography, or fashion, so they can get interesting jobs. However, employers will take advantage of them because they have many candidates to choose from since the market is already over-saturated.

I am not saying that the humanities is the wrong way to go, but graduates in those subjects have lower wages and are less likely to find work in their fields compared to those who graduate with a degree in science. According to a study conducted by Andrew Sum, a labor economist at Northeastern University and leading expert on the youth labor market, more than half of all humanities graduates get jobs that do not require university degrees.

The tuition fees and certain majors are the two main reasons to discourage students from going to college. First, the idea that they will be spending their twenties and thirties paying off their university or college debts once they have graduated is a big negative, and second, their preferred major will not guarantee them a job in their field, or they will end up working menial jobs.

According to a report by myUface in 2009,  U.K. tuition is between $5,500 and $28,500 USD per year, whereas in the U.S., the tuition is between $5,000 and $30,000. On top of that, you must add $8,000 for living expenses, if the student moves away from his or her hometown.

I am not discouraging students from going to a university, but they have to take tuition fees and their chosen field of study into account before they make their final decision. Choosing a science degree is a safer investment than a humanities degree because there are more jobs and less competition. Nowadays, majoring in the humanities field is a gamble, but if students want to succeed in this competitive field, they must know that there will be blood, sweat, and tears all the way.

If students do not choose higher education, there are other interesting professions, such as becoming an electrician or plumber. You can make good money, and skip three or four years at a college or university and the financial struggle from student loan debts. Dear students, the decision is yours.

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The word is out: jobs in North Dakota! The oil boom has drawn the attention of people throughout the country. With the economy in a poor state, many are flocking to North Dakota’s oil fields to answer the call for employment, only to find little or no housing.  The oil companies have erected camps consisting of manufactured housing, but many of them are now full.

While more accommodations are needed, the locals often oppose the construction of additional camps. With the lack of housing, people are resorting to other, more desperate, types of lodging. Many motels have been booked for several years and rentals have become harder to find. That leaves the influx of people scrambling for other forms of shelter. Numerous people have taken to living in campers or RVs, while others are living in their vehicles.

Local officials and lawmakers are worried about the newcomers that have been forced to seek unsatisfactory living environments. North Dakota winters are harsh: temperatures are as low as 2 degrees Fahrenheit, while wind chills factors can deliver sub-zero temperatures. Marna Hornung and her husband are one family that has come to North Dakota for employment. They are currently living in a camper on private property.

When asked how they are preparing for the winter ahead Hornung replied “we have put a skirting on our camper using plywood with electric heaters underneath. We have hay bales around the outside up against the wood. We heat with propane a 100 gallon tank which cost $51 to fill up. We also have an electric space heater inside the camper.”

“The money is well worth the hardships of winter that is yet to come,” she continued. “My husband is making $27.50 hour driving sand out to the wells.” What exactly is driving this oil boom? According to “Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated mean undiscovered volumes of 3.65 billion barrels of oil, 1.85 trillion cubic feet of associated/dissolved natural gas, and 148 million barrels of natural gas liquids in the Bakken Shale Formation of the Williston Basin Province, Montana and North Dakota.”

In May of 2011 it was announced by Secretary Ken Salazar that the update of the 2008 assessment of the Bakken Formation will begin in October 2011, at the start of the 2012 fiscal year, depending on funding. What does this mean to newcomers like Hornung? It means living in their camper taking super-short showers with their six-gallon hot water heater, and braving fierce winters.

“Our plan is to stay at least 5 years, for now. If the boom goes on longer, then we will stay. If not, we will move on and go back to trucking OTR.” Hornung said. While some find the oil boom unsavory and a bad idea, to others it is a means of economic relief.  Though the hardships are many, when asked if it was worth it, Hornung replied, “Hell yes! Got to love oil!”

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Unemployed Americans are completing for jobs with those who are already employed. According to the Huffington Post, the job market is even worse than the 9.1 percent unemployment rate suggests. The 14 million unemployed Americans are also competing with 8.8 million people who have part-time jobs but are in search of full-time work.

Those with part-time jobs are more likely to gain full-time positions before the unemployed. Economists suspect that when companies are able to add more work hours, they will tack on more hours to part-timers’ workdays before making new hires.  

The New York Times reported that August brought no increase in the number of jobs in the United States. Patrick J. O’Keefe, the director of economic research at J.H. Cohn, an accounting firm, said the economy has about the same number of jobs as it did in January 2000. “We expected a weak report, and what we got was even weaker,” said O’Keefe.  

The monthly report showed a 17,000-job gain among private employers but no growth over all. The Congressional Budget Office said it’s expected for the rate of unemployment to exceed 8 percent until 2014. Republicans pointed to recent job reports as evident that the stimulus tactics of Obama are not working.

In an email to reporters, the Republican National Committee took note of the worst jobs report in nearly a year, saying that there has been “two and a half years of Obamanomics and nothing to show for it.” Michele Bachmann commented on job climate during her visit in Iowa on Friday. 

“The American people don’t need speeches, they need jobs,”  Bachmann said. While campaigning in Florida, Mitt Romney called the job report “unacceptable.” The new job report had a negative effect on the stock market. The

Dow Jones industrial average fell 253.31 points, 2.2 percent, Friday, closing at 11,240.26. “As long as payrolls are weak, you will continue to hear cries of not just recession risk but cries that the United States is in a recession and we just don’t know it,” said Ellen Zentner, the senior United States economist for Nomura Securities.

Overall, unemployment is lower than it was a year ago, but those gains have been among whites, Hispanics and Asians. For blacks, unemployment has increased, to 16.7 percent from 16.2 percent.

Obama is expected to renew the payroll tax cut and extend unemployment benefits, both benefits that are about to expire. Obama is also scheduled to give a speech on improving unemployment rates on Thursday night.

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Wisconsin governor Scott Walker conceded that he made a mistake last February in the way he limited collective bargaining power that led to weeks of massive protests in Madison. However, he still defends his policies and believes that ending collective bargaining was somehow a cost-saving measure to the state.

Nationwide, Walker was criticized for trying to end state worker rights. He was also heavily criticized for his bullying tactics that did not allow any debate on the issue, but rather forced the law through.”The mistake I made early on is, I looked at it almost like the head of a small business: identify a problem, identify a solution and go out and do it,” Walker told Reuters at the National Governor’s Association meeting in Salt Lake City.

“I don’t think we built enough of a political case, so we let … the national organizations come in and define the debate while we were busy just getting the job done,” he said.

Walker continues to argue that his extreme policies helped prevent layoffs for state workers, even though restricting collective bargaining has not saved one cent. The political fallout from the controversy is still being felt. Six Republican senators who supported the measure will be forced to defend their seats during a recall election in August. Three Democratic senators are also up for recall. Democrats vow to recall Walker in January after he has served one year in office and will be eligible for recall according to state law.

If Democrats gain just three of the seats at stake in the special summer elections, they will take control of the upper house and have some control at preventing Walker’s draconian slashing measures. But, Republicans will still control the Assembly.

“If the Republican candidates are outspent two to one, it’s pretty difficult,” Walker said of the recall effort.

“Conversely, if things end up being relatively even and the message gets out,” the party will have a better chance of prevailing, he said. Walker said he did not plan to campaign in the contested districts.

Last November, a large majority of states fell to Republican governors who promised to provide jobs to the nation’s long suffering unemployed. However, they have failed to deliver and their approval ratings are plummeting. Walker believes that his poll numbers will improve when voters see improvement in the economy.

But, while Washington fights over the ridiculous debt ceiling and each state is trying to ban abortion and other morality clauses, the unemployment rate stays stagnant. Sorry, Scott but your numbers aren’t going to improve any time soon. Slashing spending throughout the country DOES NOT help jobs.

Image Courtesy of  http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.175221569161761.46634.175220979161820

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The Australian Federal Government has begun to investigate how Australians with mental illnesses can overcome barriers to education, training and employment.

Charity organisations have expressed their support for the new inquiry, with Wesley Mission welcoming the research.
“From our experience and research there is a strong link between mental health issues and the degree of workforce engagement and participation,” the CEO of Wesley Mission, the Rev Dr Keith Garner said.

The committee’s inquiry will concentrate on:

•    Improving access to education and employment services through greater collaboration between government and health, education, training and employment service providers.
•    Strategies to improve the ability of people, families, community members and employers to respond to the needs of people with mental illnesses.

“This inquiry affords the Committee a unique opportunity to inform the Government’s ongoing commitment to mental health care reform and maximizing employment participation,” Committee Chair Amanda Rishworth said.

Dr Garner of Wesley Mission said that employers were often the first contact point for people with mental health issues.
“Employers, educators and employment providers need to be skilled in identifying mental health issues, reducing stigma and developing a knowledge base to refer people to appropriate services,” he said. “The earlier the intervention the greater probability of recovery or sustainable management of the problem.”

In 2010, Wesley Mission released a study showing that 77 percent of people surveyed have either suffered from mental health problems or know a sufferer.

The survey was conducted with more then 2000 people.

“A range of services and support already exist for students, job seekers and employees with mental illnesses. A key focus of our inquiry will be to examine how we can continue to enhance these in order to improve people’s participation in education, training and employment,” said Ms Rishworth in relation to the inquiry’s new aims.

Dr Garner of Wesley Missions said that the survey done by the Mission indicates that there are many sufferers of mental illness, particularly amongst young people, who do not seek formal care.

“One of the reasons is the stigma, the uninformed community attitudes which make sufferers ashamed to admit the way they feel. We need people to feel free enough to access help and access it early,” said Dr Garner.

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