Labor Markets

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  • Essay

    The Digital Skills Gap: What Workers Need for the Jobs of the Future

    Business leaders have warned for years that what they see on job applications does not match what they need in new employees. There are not enough workers with the right digital skills. And as the world economy struggles to its feet after COVID-19, that skills gap threatens to keep pushing it down.

    Mar 1, 2022

  • Report

    School Staffing Challenges in the Pandemic's Third Year

    As of fall 2021, school staff shortages were most acute for substitutes, bus drivers, special education teachers, and paraprofessionals. The turnover of superintendents was normal but half of them said that they might leave in the next few years or were unsure of how long they would stay.

    Feb 15, 2022

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  • News Release

    News Release

    RAND Factbook Highlights Demographic, Mental Health and Labor Participation of Military Veterans

    A factbook, accompanied by a collection of infographics, explores trends and estimates about the demographics of veterans. It focuses on the size, sex, age, race/ethnicity, educational attainment, and geographic distribution of the veteran population as compared with nonveterans.

    Oct 24, 2023

  • Infographic

    Infographic

    U.S. Veteran Labor Market Trends

    Veterans, regardless of race/ethnicity, have lower unemployment rates than nonveterans and are more likely to work in the public sector. The top industries for veteran employment are public administration and manufacturing.

    Oct 24, 2023

  • Group side silhouette men and women of different culture, photo by AYSIA/Adobe Stock

    Report

    A Summary of Veteran-Related Statistics

    What are some trends and statistics among the U.S. veteran population? Baseline estimates related to veterans' demographics, mental health, and labor market outcomes can support the work of policymakers and researchers focused on veteran-related issues.

    Oct 24, 2023

  • Journal Article

    Journal Article

    The Gender Gap in Performance Reviews

    I examine gender differences in 100,000+ performance reviews for 170 companies across 12 industries. I find that women rate their performance lower than men, and these differences persist when accounting for manager and peer reviews of the worker.

    Oct 16, 2023

  • Technician worker using tablet controlling robot in factory, Checking and repair automatic robot, photo by visoot/Adobe Stock

    Visualization

    Rage Against the Machine? How AI Could Affect the Future of Work

    Understanding how technology and artificial intelligence have—and have not—affected jobs in the past can provide insights on the future of the American workforce. What is the relationship between occupational exposure and technologies, wages, and employment related to artificial intelligence?

    Oct 11, 2023

  • Report

    Report

    Artificial Intelligence and the Labor Force: A Data-Driven Approach to Identifying Exposed Occupations

    The authors evaluate occupational exposure to U.S. technology patents and specific artificial intelligence technologies, such as machine learning, natural language processing, speech recognition, planning control, and evolutionary computation.

    Oct 11, 2023

  • Tacet Venari participants analyze metadata to identify any suspicious activity on the network during exercise Tacet Venari at Ramstein Air Base, Germany

    Journal Article

    The Race for U.S. Technical Talent: Can the DOD and DIB Compete?

    This policy brief uses LinkedIn data to track the movement of tech workers between industries and metro areas, with a particular focus on the U.S. Department of Defense, the defense industrial base, and the so-called “Big Tech” companies.

    Oct 6, 2023

  • Filming for “The Dark Knight Rises” in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, August 12, 2011, <a href=

    Commentary

    The City of Pittsburgh's a Movie Star

    Pennsylvania lawmakers and other stakeholders should consider updates to the film tax credit law and economic development strategy to improve the state's competitiveness, enhance the stability of the industry, and fill gaps in the current workforce.

    Oct 5, 2023

  • Business performance checklist ideas Businessman using laptop doing online checklist survey Fill out the digital form checklist. online assessment, photo by Alek/Adobe Stock

    Research Brief

    Financial Incentives for Businesses Can Increase Employment of People with Criminal Records

    Connecting individuals with criminal histories to jobs benefits both them and society, but employers are hesitant to hire them. Modest direct financial incentives such as tax credits could motivate employers to hire more people with prior convictions.

    Oct 2, 2023

  • RAND Weekly Recap

    Blog

    Escalation in Ukraine, a Trilateral Imperialist Threat, Disaster Recovery: RAND Weekly Recap

    This weekly recap focuses on the risk of escalation in Ukraine, the growing threat of a North-Korea-Russia-China partnership, the economics of disaster recovery, and more.

    Sep 22, 2023

  • Burned cars and homes are seen in Lahaina, Hawaii, after the August 8 wildfires, August 18, 2023, photo by Sandy Hooper/USA Today via Reuters

    Commentary

    Disaster Recovery Creates Its Own Bubble

    Shortages of workers and materials inevitably make rebuilding slower and more expensive after a natural disaster. In Maui, this is likely to be a problem for agencies like FEMA that provide public assistance. But it will also be a problem for individual households if private insurance payouts are insufficient to rebuild.

    Sep 20, 2023

  • News Release

    News Release

    Most Ohio Students Who Earn Manufacturing-Related Credentials Work in Other Industries; Findings Hold Lessons for Push ...

    Most students who complete manufacturing-related credentials in Ohio do not end up employed in manufacturing in the state, highlighting a challenge that faces policymakers as they push to create more U.S. manufacturing jobs.

    Sep 14, 2023

  • A worker builds frames for solar panels at First Solar in Perrysburg, Ohio, July 8, 2022, photo by Megan Jelinger/Reuters

    Research Brief

    Exploring Ohio's Pipeline of Manufacturing Workers

    The resurging U.S. manufacturing industry has a growing need for skilled and diverse workers. An examination of the pipeline between Ohio's postsecondary education system and employment highlights the challenges and opportunities that workers, employers, and educational institutions in the industry face.

    Sep 14, 2023

  • Report

    Report

    Strengthening the Manufacturing Workforce in Ohio

    The authors of this report examine the pipeline between Ohio’s postsecondary education system and the manufacturing workforce, focusing on ways to bolster the supply of workers and the diversity of the workforce.

    Sep 14, 2023

  • RAND Weekly Recap

    Blog

    The Four-Day School Week, AI and Social Media Manipulation, School Safety: RAND Weekly Recap

    This weekly recap focuses on the costs and benefits of a four-day school week, how artificial intelligence is bringing a new era of social media manipulation, the effects of placing police officers in schools, and more.

    Sep 8, 2023

  • Delivery workers congregate outside of a row of restaurants in the Union Square neighborhood of New York, August 16, 2022, photo by Richard B. Levine/Reuters

    Commentary

    A Potential Alternative for Regulating Internet-Based Platform Services

    The use of internet-based platform services like Amazon, DoorDash, and Uber Eats is increasing and can be helpful. But the companies that offer these services may be engaging in predatory practices that can harm users and local businesses. Some form of centralized policy action may help; local governments could play a more active role.

    Aug 29, 2023

  • Teacher Aleksandra Artemova teaches Ukrainian refugee children during a school preparation course in Dusseldorf, Germany, March 18, 2022, photo by Thilo Schmuelgen/Reuters

    Commentary

    The EU Can't Treat Ukrainian Refugees Like Short-Term Visitors

    Although EU countries, communities, and citizens have been very welcoming to Ukrainian refugees, it is not enough to treat them as short-term visitors, meet their immediate humanitarian needs, and let them wait out the war. By educating and employing them instead, EU countries can enrich their own communities and support Ukraine.

    Jul 24, 2023

  • RAND Weekly Recap

    Blog

    Reflecting on the Pandemic, RAND Turns 75, Labor Trafficking: RAND Weekly Recap

    This weekly recap focuses on lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic, 75 years of influential RAND research, reducing labor trafficking in the United States, and more.

    May 12, 2023

  • Hands of a young girl using a sewing machine in a workshop, photo by Thanaphong Araveeporn/Getty Images

    Research Brief

    Labor Trafficking in the United States

    The U.S. Department of State has estimated that 14,500 to 17,500 people are trafficked into the United States each year to perform bonded or forced labor. The dimensions of this problem are growing, making it more challenging to study and address.

    May 9, 2023

  • A worker applies a skim coat of mortar to a wall (cover of RAND RR-A1681-1)

    Report

    Current and Future Research on Labor Trafficking in the United States

    Reducing the prevalence of human trafficking is a national priority. In this report, researchers recommend a research agenda for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to address labor trafficking policy and enforcement.

    May 9, 2023

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