Wellness & Well-being Highlights September 2
Wellness & Well-being Highlights
for the
Week of September 2, 2024
This week’s edition of our Worker Wellness & Well-being blog reveals the kick-off of the many efforts to promote Suicide Prevention Awareness Month—to how the US Surgeon General issued yet another warning…this time as it relates to “parents and stress”—to an array of stories covering the head injury-related deaths of middle- and high school football players over the past 2 weeks. This week I would like to take this opportunity to take a closer look how workers are being impacted in today’s economy. I think the WSJ put it best: “Never before have so many Americans redrawn their relationships with work as a result of one public-health crisis.”1 Four years later, millions of adults (workers) are still trying to navigate the effects of long COVID. Meanwhile, another report indicated that as the hiring market cools down, bosses are resetting wages…in other words offering $80k per year for a position 1 year ago they posted at $120k. This trend touches both white- and blue-collar talent.2 And then, there is the story focusing on the “American Dream” or the lack thereof. Sadly, a recent poll suggests: “While around 90% of children born in 1940 were ultimately better off than their parents…only around half of those born in the 1980s were able to say the same.”3 Much of this decline can be linked to economic immobility, job insecurity, and the weakening of unions via labor laws.
So, with respect to Labor Day, and more importantly ALL workers, it seems fitting to reflect on a couple vital points in last week’s press:
1) Fortune reported, “Many American workers don’t make a living wage, and it’s even worse for women and people of color.”4
2) The WSJ stated, “…the share of people holding more than one job ticked up to 5.3% in July from 5.2% in June…[which] is a significant increase from a pandemic low of 4% in April 2020….”5
As such, here are my respective thoughts: A very strong positive of a unionized workforce is that ALL workers are treated equally when it comes to pay and benefits. And, most unions still negotiate for benefit packages that often include health & welfare (frequently for the entire family vs individual), defined pensions (vs defined contributions: Think: 401k), and training programs. In essence, the collective bargaining agreement serves as an effective tool for DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion). It is no secret that “labor” tends to make up a large portion of a firm’s budget. So, when cuts are considered, labor is typically the first targeted area for belt-tightening. To this end, many businesses for the past couple of decades have shifted from offering defined pension plans to defined contribution (DC) plans. Some experts suggest that DCs were NOT originally designed to serve as the common workers’ retirement plan. Decades ago, the 401k was created for CEOs looking to defer taxes regarding their hefty pay packages. Expecting a blue-collar worker to come home after a hard day’s work (Think: construction trades) and then manage his/her money for a retirement 30 years in the future is absurd! If you don’t agree with me…Then, why are there college degree programs that address this area of financial planning? Furthermore, unfortunately, workers who leave one firm’s DC are left to then figure out tax implications let alone how to start over in the new company’s plan. For this alone, I am GRATEFUL to BOTH labor and management leaders who had the foresight in the 1960s to develop multi-employer benefit funds…one, in which, my benefits traveled with me between signatory contractors. Thus, avoiding a lap or gap in service. If this nation seeks to continue as a world leader, it MUST take care of its workers by providing stability in their lives!
[4] https://fortune.com/2024/08/26/many-us-workers-dont-make-living-wage-women-people-of-color/
Suicide Prevention: Talk Away the Dark
Suicide Prevention Awareness Month: Promos
Construction deaths / State laws / Narcan access
US Surgeon General’s warning: Parents are Stressed
Listeria outbreak & Lunch meat
Tennis / Doping / Unequal treatment
Head trauma & Youth football Deaths (1)
Head trauma & Youth Football Deaths (2)
Head trauma & Youth Football Deaths (3)
Head trauma & Youth Football Deaths (4)
Canadian Govt steps into rail shutdown
The out-of-reach “American Dream”
More workers need 2 jobs to stay afloat
>40% of FT workers do NOT make “living wage”
Bosses finding ways to cut pay
COVID’s impact on career paths
Contractors guarding against “wage theft”
Australia’s attempt to ensure workers are NOT always ON
STEM: Dominance & Discrimination
Newest “Out of Office” messaging?
AR-15 / Rights / Supreme Court
Europe & Organized (Drug) Gangs
Upcoming webinars, etc.:
Gun Storage Safety Week (Sept 1-7)
Student Suicide Prevention & Postvention
US Congress Briefing: Maternal Suicide (9/10)
Toolkit to Prevent Firearm Suicide (9/11)
Suicide Prevention: From Edge to Empowerment (9/11)
SUD in the Construction Industry (9/17)
Finding Mental Health Resources
NOTE: The links provided above are for informational purposes only. None of these serve as a substitute for medical advice one should obtain from his/her own primary care physician and/or mental health professional. Please contact johngaal@moaflcio.org with related questions or comments.
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