BY KATHLEEN LYNN AND DAVID SHEINGOLD
STAFF WRITERS |
THE RECORD
In the overheated housing market of 2005, Barbara O’Leary and Dennis Poletto bought a Bergenfield colonial for $440,000 — just five years after the previous owner had paid $175,000.
Now, they’d like to downsize into a place with no stairs. But they feel they can’t move, because real estate agents have told them their home would probably sell for about $330,000.
Ridgewood NJ, Every year, we hear from Parks & Rec that lifeguards trained to work at a sand-bottom facility are in short supply. Lifeguarding at Graydon requires a higher level of skill than is required at a concrete pool.
This summer, young people ages 15 and up may take the requisite course right at Graydon and become eligible to apply to be a lifeguard there. (Recertification for current lifeguards is offered separately.)This is an excellent and unusual opportunity.
All classes will be held at Graydon in July. A prerequisite fitness and endurance test will be held on Thursday, June 30. Details are in the yellow section of the flier reproduced below.
Please pass this information to any young person you know who may be interested. Ridgewood residency is NOT required. The prerequisite test is on June 30.
Questions? Contact the Village Department of Parks & Recreation at 201-670-5560 (8:30am–4:30pmMonday–Friday).
Ridgewood NJ, Ridgewood kids keeping the entrepreneurial spirit alive . Patrolman Anthony Mormino keeping cool on a hot day with a refreshing glass of lemonade from some young entrepreneurs on Van Buren Street.
Problem solving, creative thinking , learning from failure and hard work will build there confidence pretty much taking them anywhere in life and are skills sorely lacking in today environment .
U.S. productivity growth, the greatest determinant of living standards, has been lower for the past five years than any five-year period on record. New data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that productivity growth has averaged 0.4%per year over the past half-decade. This is 82% below the average of the prior six decades, which is as far back as this data extends.
The importance of productivity growth has been described in blunt terms by:
Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen, who stated that “the most important factor determining living standards is productivity growth.”
the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), which reported that “a small change in the growth of productivity” over an extended period can inflict more harm than recessions, because lower productivity reduces economic “output by an ever-increasing amount.”
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics economist Betty W. Su, who wrote that “high productivity growth” affords people with a “higher standard of living and quality of life.”
Productivity growth is especially vital for people with low incomes, because low-wage workers in highly productive nations have much better standards of living than their peers in less productive ones. For example, McDonald’s workers in the U.S. can buy about 2.4 Big Macs with their earnings from an hour of work, but this drops to:
2.2 Big Macs in Western Europe,
0.8 Big Macs in Eastern Europe, and
0.4 Big Macs in Latin America.
This amounts to a stunning 500% premium in purchasing power in the U.S. versus Latin America. As detailed by Princeton economics professor Orley C. Ashenfelter, McDonalds’ workers across the world perform the same jobs with the same levels of productivity, but because they live in nations with different levels of productivity, these workers have vastly different standards of living.
Ridgewood NJ, Improving economic conditions have finally caught up to millennials, providing them with a brighter job market, according to the United States Department of Labor.
But a recent Federal Reserve Bank of New York report says the devil is in the details. Not all new college graduates are doing equally well. The kind of degree they earned is an enormous factor in the job hunt.
“There’s no question that your field of study significantly alters your prospects, but even having chosen the right field is no guarantee,” says Matt Stewart, an entrepreneur and co-founder of College Works Painting (www.collegeworks.com), an internship program that provides practical business experience for college students.
“How you approach your field, such as engagement at an internship, can boost your professional prospects immensely.”
For example, interns with College Works Painting operate their own house-painting business with hands-on guidance from mentors. They learn valuable leadership skills by functioning as leaders in a business.
“Unemployment for our alumni has remained at less than 4 percent, including when youth unemployment exceeded 16 percent a few years ago,” Stewart says. “This kind of challenging yet fun student experience helps ensure a good career for college graduates right out of the gate.”
He offers tips about what students should look for in an internship so they can gain the professional experience they need to land a job after graduation.
• Know what you will actually be doing. While simply being in a company’s culture has value, many businesses assign students to their lowest-level work. Grunt work, to some extent, is a fact of life in most professions. But that kind of work won’t propel a student’s career. Consider an internship that gives you real responsibility and provides experiences that will definitely come in handy in your future career. • Consider a company’s internship recognition. Don’t accept an internship with just any organization. Think about the business awards the company has won, the type of articles that have been written about the company, and how the company contributes to their industry and community. If you can, get information on how other former interns fared. • For any student, real experience is crucial. Whether you’re an artist, athlete, musician, theater major, English student, a STEM-field student, or a business major or future entrepreneur, getting experience often comes with a heavy price. This includes the loss of personal or family finances. Look for opportunities that provide guidance while allowing you to apply skills to real-life challenges such as budgeting, marketing, and managing employees. These are transferable skills that apply to any industry.
“Regardless of how the economy is doing, you’ll want to put forth your best effort,” Stewart says. “As we’ve seen, the market can take a nosedive at any time.”
About Matt Stewart
Matt Stewart is co-founder of College Works Painting (collegeworks.com), which provides business experience for thousands of college students each year. The award-winning program also offers high-quality house-painting services for homeowners.
As lawmakers consider a Democratically sponsored bill to raise the state’s minimum wage to $15 an hour in as soon as five years, state Republicans are pointing to the wage hike’s potential impact to New Jersey’s already strained budget. In his testimony at the Senate Labor Committee hearing where that bill advanced Monday, Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon predicted that healthcare providers who receive state funding would turn to the state to offset the cost. JT Aregood, PolitickerNJ Read more
Ben Steverman bsteverman
May 13, 2016 — 5:57 AM EDT
Almost 20 percent of Americans 65 and older are now working, according to the latest data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s the most older people with a job since the early 1960s, before the U.S. enacted Medicare.
Because of the huge baby boom generation that is just now hitting retirement age, the U.S. has the largest number of older workers ever.
When asked to describe their plans for retirement, 27 percent of Americans said they will “keep working as long as possible,” a 2015 Federal Reserve study found. Another 12 percent said they don’t plan to retire at all.
Mark Twain is credited with saying “figures don’t lie, but liars figure.” If he were around today Twain’s quote might go something like this: “Figures do lie, and liars figure out how to make people believe them.”
Granted, not as catchy.
But my quote goes a long way toward explaining something that is bothering many political pundits today. President Obama whined last week that he’s not getting enough credit for the economy.
Democrats are besides themselves wondering why Americans are so angry that they might be willing to elect Donald Trump president when the official unemployment rate is only 5%, oil prices are near their lowest level in a decade and the economy has been expanding for seven straight years.
Why aren’t Americans happier?
One of those pundits made me chuckle Tuesday night when he was talking about Trump’s primaries victories in another five states. He suggested that Americans were somehow being brainwashed by the media into thinking the economy was really bad when in fact it was good.
By Dave Boyer – The Washington Times – Thursday, April 28, 2016
The White House labored Thursday to explain a first-quarter economic report showing the weakest growth in two years, even as President Obama was trumpeting his mastery of the economy in a New York Times Magazine interview.
The Department of Commerce reported that U.S. gross domestic product rose 0.5 percent in the first quarter of 2016, the third straight sluggish start to a year. Consumer spending and business purchases both fell, continuing trends that could have ominous implications for Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign as she tries to claim the mantle as Mr. Obama’s successor.
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — The U.S. economy sputtered in the first quarter, expanding at the slowest pace in two years as business slashed investment by the steepest amount since the Great Recession.
Gross domestic product, the sum of a nation’s economy, slowed to a 0.5% annual growth rate in the first three months of 2016, the government said Thursday. The U.S. had grown 1.4%, 2% and 3.9% in the prior three quarters.
“It’s not just technology defining the youngest working-age population, it’s also a distinct optimism and a desire to do work that matters,” says youth psychologist Dr. Jason Richardson.
“I don’t think millennials lack the work ethic and soft skills that others say they do. Many of those things come with age regardless of when you were born. But I do think millennials have been coddled. Many have an aversion to seek resolutions to problems within themselves – outside of technology.”
Richardson, author of “It’s All BS! We’re All Wrong, And You’re All Right!” (www.drjasonrichardson.com), offers millennials suggestions for expanding their skillset.
• Try more authentic “connections.” Competition among millennials can be fierce, especially when it comes to how your social media profile looks. You can have a thousand friends, “Like” the cool, trendy items and have an impressive bio with the right degree from the right school. More one-on-one time with your peers, however, helps with truly interpersonal settings, including working with people from older generations. • Distinguish yourself by offering your full attention – a rare commodity nowadays. People never have to be bored anymore. If we must wait for anything, we can find distraction in our smartphones, which are on-demand boredom-killers. On the job, dividing your attention while on your phone with clients, management, during conference calls, etc. will not be appreciated. It’s not multitasking when your attention is compromised – a major hindrance in communication. • Take a cue from older generations; grow thicker skin. Today, colleges are catering to students with “safe spaces” in case their feelings are hurt. Professors often warn students of “trigger warnings” in case academic content could be seen as offensive. Older generations were not as coddled, which helps them accept criticism at work. Thin skin can keep you from finding solutions to problems. Learn to accept professional criticism graciously so you may think more clearly on possible solutions. • Base progress on doing good and less on feeling good. Doing good and feeling good don’t always coincide. Remember, you’re the baby who learned to walk despite many failed attempts. You didn’t need to feel good to be successful. Place value in the work and personal gains made as you move forward. Think of yourself as continually developing or becoming. You are more than what’s written on your social media profile.
“We can’t always control the conditions of this amazing world,” Richardson says, “but you can take control of the amazing you, if you believe you can.”
About Jason Richardson, Psy.D., MBA
Dr. Jason Richardson (www.drjasonrichardson.com) is a psychologist who earned his principles for self-improvement as a world-traveling athlete, doctoral student and student of life. He maintained top-10 status on the professional BMX circuit for most of his 15-year career, retiring with a gold medal at the 2007 Pan American Games.
A Billion Dollar Stool to Reach the Bottom Rung of the Job Ladder
Adam Millsap
Tuesday, April 19, 2016
In February, the Obama administration proposed a “First Job” initiative. The main goal of the aptly titled initiative is to help unemployed young people obtain their first job by spending $5.5 billion on grants, training, and direct wages. Unfortunately – but unsurprisingly – the press release failed to acknowledge the most significant factor impeding employment in this age group: the minimum wage.
Everyone knows that a first job is a vital step in a young person’s development. Research has shown that work experience at a young age teaches positive work habits, time management, perseverance, and improves self-confidence. Increases in teenage employment also reduce the rate of violent crime. Yet despite these well-known benefits, the US maintains a minimum wage policy that makes it very difficult for all but the most productive teenagers to find a job.
When the minimum wage was discussed in the late 19th and early 20th century it was in the context of preventing the least skilled, most “undesirable” workers from finding a job, with the goal of eradicating the unemployable people. For the next 80-plus years it was common knowledge that a minimum wage would reduce employment among the least-skilled workers. The only debate was about whether such a reduction was desirable from society’s perspective, as many of the appalling eugenicists of the time contended.
As late as 1987, the New York Times editorial staff recommended a minimum wage of $0 because of its negative effects on employment. The Times argued that the minimum wage was an ineffective anti-poverty tool whose employment costs outweighed any benefits from higher wages.
Consumers have been the missing link in the U.S. economic recovery and are likely to remain so absent a major change in sentiment.
Despite the seemingly endless stream of Wall Street economists who believe the U.S. is about to snap out of its malaise, most Americans think the economy is bad and getting worse, according to several recent surveys.
One of the more glaring examples of how strong pessimism has become is Gallup’s U.S. Economic Confidence Index. The measure gauges the difference between respondents who say the economy is improving or declining. The most recent results are not good.
Fully 59 percent say the economy is “getting worse” against just 37 percent who say it is “getting better.” That gap of 22 percentage points is the worst since August, according to Gallup, which polled 3,542 adults. The index carries a sampling error of plus or minus 2 percentage points.
As a proposal to regulate Uber and other car-hailing services moves closer to becoming reality in Newark, the company says it is prepared to take its cars and go home. Dan Ivers, NJ.com, Read more
Ridgewood NJ, Improving economic conditions have finally caught up to millennials, providing them with a brighter job market, according to the United States Department of Labor.
But a recent Federal Reserve Bank of New York report says the devil is in the details. Not all new college graduates are doing equally well. The kind of degree they earned is an enormous factor in the job hunt.
“There’s no question that your field of study significantly alters your prospects, but even having chosen the right field is no guarantee,” says Matt Stewart, an entrepreneur and co-founder of College Works Painting (www.collegeworks.com), an internship program that provides practical business experience for college students.
“How you approach your field, such as engagement at an internship, can boost your professional prospects immensely.”
For example, interns with College Works Painting operate their own house-painting business with hands-on guidance from mentors. They learn valuable leadership skills by functioning as leaders in a business.
“Unemployment for our alumni has remained at less than 4 percent, including when youth unemployment exceeded 16 percent a few years ago,” Stewart says. “This kind of challenging yet fun student experience helps ensure a good career for college graduates right out of the gate.”
He offers tips about what students should look for in an internship so they can gain the professional experience they need to land a job after graduation.
• Know what you will actually be doing. While simply being in a company’s culture has value, many businesses assign students to their lowest-level work. Grunt work, to some extent, is a fact of life in most professions. But that kind of work won’t propel a student’s career. Consider an internship that gives you real responsibility and provides experiences that will definitely come in handy in your future career. • Consider a company’s internship recognition. Don’t accept an internship with just any organization. Think about the business awards the company has won, the type of articles that have been written about the company, and how the company contributes to their industry and community. If you can, get information on how other former interns fared. • For any student, real experience is crucial. Whether you’re an artist, athlete, musician, theater major, English student, a STEM-field student, or a business major or future entrepreneur, getting experience often comes with a heavy price. This includes the loss of personal or family finances. Look for opportunities that provide guidance while allowing you to apply skills to real-life challenges such as budgeting, marketing, and managing employees. These are transferable skills that apply to any industry.
“Regardless of how the economy is doing, you’ll want to put forth your best effort,” Stewart says. “As we’ve seen, the market can take a nosedive at any time.”
About Matt Stewart
Matt Stewart is co-founder of College Works Painting (collegeworks.com), which provides business experience for thousands of college students each year. The award-winning program also offers high-quality house-painting services for homeowners.
