美国国家公共电台 NPR--These are the job sectors that are hiring and experiencing wage growth

These are the job sectors² that are hiring and experiencing wage growth

Transcript³

NPR's Steve Inskeep speaks with Arin Dube, professor of economics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, about how wage growth is breaking down some barriers in the job market.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

Right now, in this country, there's a tale of two job markets, so to speak. We reported on a lot of high-profile layoffs⁴ in the tech and media spaces, including here at NPR. But other sectors are still hot, and they're racing⁵ to find people. We reached out to businesses looking to recruit and retain employees. Lauren Schenning is the talent acquisition manager with Coakley & Williams Construction in Fairfax, Va. She says they're willing to hire people from across the country.

LAUREN SCHENNING: We're a general contractor⁶, so there is a workforce⁷ shortage in the construction industry.

FADEL: Steven Cramer, president of the North American Customer Service Management Association in Phoenix⁸, Ariz., says the increasing request for remote work is hampering⁹ efforts there.

STEVEN CRAMER: Some companies are really trying to bring people back into the office, so that becomes a challenge for the employers.

FADEL: Let's turn now to Arin Dube. He's an economist¹⁰ with the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research. Good morning. Thanks for being on the program.

ARIN DUBE: Good morning. Thanks for having me.

FADEL: So let's talk about where the job market is hot right now.

DUBE: So following the pandemic, we have had a very tight labor¹¹ market, especially for low-wage workers. Workers in the service industries - think hospitality, for example, and restaurants and hotels. This has been a sector¹ that has seen very fast wage growth. And that has led to something that's very interesting. We've actually seen wages rise faster at the bottom than the top, reducing wage inequality. So that has flipped¹² the script...

FADEL: Interesting.

DUBE: ...On rising wage inequality for over the last 40 years.

FADEL: So does this, then, make it a more fair job market, where low-wage earners are in a position to demand better pay?

DUBE: I think given how poorly wages rose for those at the bottom and the middle of the distribution for so long, this tighter labor market that has led to sharper wage growth at the bottom would seem to be as fair to many people.

FADEL: So is this breaking down other barriers, as well?

DUBE: Yeah. So one interesting thing is also that we've seen the gap fall in terms of wages of Black workers and white workers, again, a gap that had been actually rising over many decades. Similarly, we have seen some reduction in the gap between women and men, reducing the gender¹³ pay gap. So generally speaking, a tighter labor market tends to do good things to workers, especially those who are less privileged.

FADEL: Are jobs the best indicator¹⁴ when the Federal Reserve looks for clues to inflation, interest rates, the risk of a recession?

DUBE: Certainly, the labor market tightness has been cited by the Federal Reserve as one possibly critical determinant of rising inflation. I think in a lot of research, economists¹⁵ still remain divided on exactly what role wages have played. In our own work, we have found that it's played some role but not necessarily the dominant¹⁶ role explaining the rise in inflation in the last few years. But certainly, the Federal Reserve will be paying close attention to that question.

FADEL: And what do you expect to see in the job market in the next few months?

DUBE: So I think, obviously, there are many variables - hard to say. I do think that there's some chance of - that the labor market is getting less tight. But overall, I think there's a good chance that we're going to see the soft landing that the Fed has been really after.

FADEL: Economics professor Arin Dube at UMass Amherst, thank you so much.

DUBE: Thank you.

(SOUNDBITE OF FRAMEWORKS' "DELPHINA")

1 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

2 sectors   

n.部门( sector的名词复数 )；领域；防御地区；扇形

参考例句：

• Berlin was divided into four sectors after the war. 战后柏林分成了4 个区。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Industry and agriculture are the two important sectors of the national economy. 工业和农业是国民经济的两个重要部门。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

3 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

4 layoffs   

临时解雇( layoff的名词复数 )； 停工，停止活动

参考例句：

• Textile companies announced 2000 fresh layoffs last week. 各纺织公司上周宣布再次裁员两千人。
• Stock prices broke when the firm suddenly announced layoffs. 当公司突然宣布裁员时，股票价格便大跌

5 racing   

n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的

参考例句：

• I was watching the racing on television last night.昨晚我在电视上看赛马。
• The two racing drivers fenced for a chance to gain the lead.两个赛车手伺机竞相领先。

6 contractor   

n.订约人，承包人，收缩肌

参考例句：

• The Tokyo contractor was asked to kick $ 6000 back as commission.那个东京的承包商被要求退还6000美元作为佣金。
• The style of house the contractor builds depends partly on the lay of the land.承包商所建房屋的式样，有几分要看地势而定。

7 workforce   

n.劳动大军，劳动力

参考例句：

• A large part of the workforce is employed in agriculture.劳动人口中一大部分受雇于农业。
• A quarter of the local workforce is unemployed.本地劳动力中有四分之一失业。

8 phoenix   

n.凤凰，长生(不死)鸟；引申为重生

参考例句：

• The airline rose like a phoenix from the ashes.这家航空公司又起死回生了。
• The phoenix worship of China is fetish worship not totem adoration.中国凤崇拜是灵物崇拜而非图腾崇拜。

9 hampering   

妨碍，束缚，限制( hamper的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• So fraud on cows and development aid is seriously hampering growth. 因此在牛问题上和发展补助上的诈骗严重阻碍了发展。
• Short-termism, carbon-trading, disputing the science-are hampering the implementation of direct economically-led objectives. 短效主义，出售二氧化碳，进行科学辩论，这些都不利于实现以经济为主导的直接目标。

10 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

11 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

12 flipped   

轻弹( flip的过去式和过去分词 )； 按（开关）； 快速翻转； 急挥

参考例句：

• The plane flipped and crashed. 飞机猛地翻转，撞毁了。
• The carter flipped at the horse with his whip. 赶大车的人扬鞭朝着马轻轻地抽打。

13 gender   

n.（生理上的）性，（名词、代词等的）性

参考例句：

• French differs from English in having gender for all nouns.法语不同于英语，所有的名词都有性。
• Women are sometimes denied opportunities solely because of their gender.妇女有时仅仅因为性别而无法获得种种机会。

14 indicator   

n.指标；指示物，指示者；指示器

参考例句：

• Gold prices are often seen as an indicator of inflation.黃金价格常常被看作是通货膨胀的指标。
• His left-hand indicator is flashing.他左手边的转向灯正在闪亮。

15 economists   

n.经济学家，经济专家( economist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The sudden rise in share prices has confounded economists. 股价的突然上涨使经济学家大惑不解。
• Foreign bankers and economists cautiously welcomed the minister's initiative. 外国银行家和经济学家对部长的倡议反应谨慎。 来自《简明英汉词典》

16 dominant   

adj.支配的，统治的；占优势的；显性的；n.主因，要素，主要的人(或物)；显性基因

参考例句：

• The British were formerly dominant in India.英国人从前统治印度。
• She was a dominant figure in the French film industry.她在法国电影界是个举足轻重的人物。