According to a Feb 7 article in the Wall Street Journal, more than 1,100 occupations in the US now require state licensing; everything from florists to barbers to people giving massages. In 2008, an astounding 23% of US workers required state licensing and approval to perform their jobs, up from 5% in 1950.
The article points out that “licensing mostly serves as a form of protectionism, allowing veterans of the trade to box out competitors who might undercut them on price or offer new services.” It also quotes a labor professor from the Univ. of Minnesota, “Occupations prefer to be licensed because they can restrict competition and obtain higher wages,” and “If you go to any statehouse, you'll see a line of occupations out the door wanting to be licensed.”
In other words, using the force of government to limit competition and keep prices artificially high – another flavor of the same problem that has corrupted labor unions and many industries.
I’d like to suggest two straightforward and principled ways to address the high unemployment rate: abolish all occupational licensing requirements, and eliminate the minimum wage. Not only would more people be employed, but prices for those of us who use such services would decline, and the overall quality would likely improve as service providers became more competitive.
Showing posts with label unemployment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label unemployment. Show all posts
Sunday, 27 February 2011
Tuesday, 23 November 2010
U.S. banks will close 5,000 branches, Whitney says
Not to mention cutting 80,000 jobs....
From: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-11-22/u-s-banks-will-close-5-000-branches-in-18-months-whitney-says.html
US banks will close 5,000 branches, Whitney says
U.S. banks will close 5,000 branches in the next 18 months as they face profit declines from decreased loan demand and lower fee revenue, said Meredith Whitney, the former Oppenheimer & Co. analyst who now runs her own firm.
Banks face an “uphill battle” in generating loan growth as consumers reduce debt and will receive less revenue from fees because of new regulations and the lack of a securitization market, Whitney, 41, said in a report dated Nov. 18 and obtained today by Bloomberg News.
[[MORE]]Whitney has said earnings pressures and new regulation will lead to some lower-income customers losing access to banking services. The number of households without access to the “traditional banking system” will rise to 41 million by 2015 from 30 million in 2009, she said in the Nov. 18 note.
“The most regrettable unintended consequence of some of the quickly written regulatory reform, we believe, will be the inevitable ‘debanking’ of the U.S. financial system,” said Whitney, who started New York-based Meredith Whitney Group after correctly predicting Citigroup Inc.’s dividend cut in 2007. “Fewer ‘bankable’ customers will contribute to the trend in fewer bank branches.”
Whitney also sees slower growth in investment banking. U.S. securities firms may cut as many as 80,000 jobs in the next 18 months as revenue growth slows, she said in September.
(continues)
From: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-11-22/u-s-banks-will-close-5-000-branches-in-18-months-whitney-says.html
US banks will close 5,000 branches, Whitney says
U.S. banks will close 5,000 branches in the next 18 months as they face profit declines from decreased loan demand and lower fee revenue, said Meredith Whitney, the former Oppenheimer & Co. analyst who now runs her own firm.
Banks face an “uphill battle” in generating loan growth as consumers reduce debt and will receive less revenue from fees because of new regulations and the lack of a securitization market, Whitney, 41, said in a report dated Nov. 18 and obtained today by Bloomberg News.
[[MORE]]Whitney has said earnings pressures and new regulation will lead to some lower-income customers losing access to banking services. The number of households without access to the “traditional banking system” will rise to 41 million by 2015 from 30 million in 2009, she said in the Nov. 18 note.
“The most regrettable unintended consequence of some of the quickly written regulatory reform, we believe, will be the inevitable ‘debanking’ of the U.S. financial system,” said Whitney, who started New York-based Meredith Whitney Group after correctly predicting Citigroup Inc.’s dividend cut in 2007. “Fewer ‘bankable’ customers will contribute to the trend in fewer bank branches.”
Whitney also sees slower growth in investment banking. U.S. securities firms may cut as many as 80,000 jobs in the next 18 months as revenue growth slows, she said in September.
(continues)
Monday, 23 March 2009
Unemployment during the Great Depression
Unemployment during the Great Depression:
1929 -- 3.2%
1930 -- 8.7%
1931 -- 15.9%
1932 -- 23.6%
1933 -- 24.9% peak
1934 -- 21.7%
1935 -- 20.1%
1936 -- 16.9%
1937 -- 14.3%
1938 -- 19.0%
1939 -- 17.2%
[[MORE]]On an apples-to-apples basis, we're at about 19% now according to SGS, with no sign of a slow-down in the unemployment rate, much less a reversal. So we're already worse than 1931.
Based on the current rate of change, I'm guessing U-6 might peak at or above 20% -- that's 24% on the Great Depression scale above and around 13% on the more widely-reported U-3.
1929 -- 3.2%
1930 -- 8.7%
1931 -- 15.9%
1932 -- 23.6%
1933 -- 24.9% peak
1934 -- 21.7%
1935 -- 20.1%
1936 -- 16.9%
1937 -- 14.3%
1938 -- 19.0%
1939 -- 17.2%
[[MORE]]On an apples-to-apples basis, we're at about 19% now according to SGS, with no sign of a slow-down in the unemployment rate, much less a reversal. So we're already worse than 1931.
Based on the current rate of change, I'm guessing U-6 might peak at or above 20% -- that's 24% on the Great Depression scale above and around 13% on the more widely-reported U-3.
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