Saint Louis Job News & Opportunities St. Louis Front Page is a weekly news publication, with daily updates, spotlighting attractions, events, business and hospitality in St. Louis, Missouri and Southwest Illinois. St. Louis News Community Info St. Louis Job News St. Louis CitySide Business News St. Charles News Southwest, IL News Fairview Heights,IL Art Gallery News Hotel News Restaurant News Style St. Louis Not Just For Kids   Downtown Map America's Center Busch Stadium Gateway Arch Scottrade Center Laclede's Landing Old Courthouse Union Station Washington Avenue   Metropolitan Map Casinos Clayton, MO Grand Center Grant's Farm Forest Park Kimmswick, MO MO Botanical Garden Soulard St. Charles, MO West Port Plaza Transportation Lambert Airport How To Reach Us: St. Louis Front Page P.O. Box 1354 St. Louis, MO 63188 Voice: 314-771-0200 Fax: 314-771-0300 To submit news, contact: editor@slfp.com To advertise, contact: advertising@slfp.com Low-skilled Labor is Being Forced Out of Job Market ST. LOUIS, MO, (SLFP.com), June 3, 2007 - In May, teen unemployment shot up to three and a half times the national unemployment rate, according to the U.S. Labor Department's monthly jobs report. The Employment Policies Institute (EPI) warns that the number of jobs held by the least skilled and the least educated have fallen, and the trend will continue as minimum and "living" wage laws increase wage rates beyond productivity levels. Despite research from leading universities showing that increasing the minimum wage destroys entry-level jobs, President Bush recently signed a bill increasing the federal minimum wage. The Labor Department's statistics show that overall unemployment held steady at 4.5%, but teenage unemployment made a significant jump, rising to 15.7% from 15.3% -- its highest level since last September. Employment among high school graduates fell by 375,000 employees, and their unemployment rate is the highest it has been since last August. High school dropouts aren't faring well, either, as their employment declined last month by 2%. And while African American teen unemployment fell slightly to 30.4% from 30.6%, it remains over six and a half times the national rate. Decades of economic research conclude that mandated wage hikes eliminate entry-level jobs, putting particular pressure on minorities and the low- skilled. A study from Cornell University shows that young African Americans typically bear almost four times the employment loss of their non-black counterparts after a minimum wage increase. Specifically, every 10% increase in the minimum wage results in a 8.5% decrease in employment for young black adults and teenagers. Research from Dr. David Neumark of the University of California, Irvine supports these results. "Government-mandated wage hikes are largely to blame for the fact that there are fewer jobs available to the low-skilled workforce," said Dr. Jill Jenkins, chief economist for the Employment Policies Institute. "Businesses adjust to minimum wage hikes by cutting jobs and hours. And decades of economic research shows that teens and high school dropouts feel the brunt of employer cost-cutting." Archived: Nearly Half of Workers Have Misjudged an Employer's Culture Environment - More Than Jobs - Occupying Minds of Today's College-Bound Students Business Executives Underestimate Link Between Workforce Quality and Preschool Education Focus on Preventing Youth Injuries in the Workplace $47 Million Competition for YouthBuild Grants Announced OSHA Launches Youth Job Safety Campaign Census Bureau Provides Free Online Tools to Help Jobseekers More Workers Express Concern about Economy Majority of Adults are Involved in Relationships with Income Disparities Employment Outlook Survey Finds Hint of Restraint in U.S. Hiring Plans People of Similar Income and Education Gravitate Toward Same Neighborhoods People of Similar Income and Education Gravitate Toward Same Neighborhoods Can Workers Recover From Unexpected Layoffs? Chronic Pain Up Almost 40 Percent Among U.S. Workers in Past Decade Package Yourself to Get Your Dream Job Most Women Aren't 'Opting Out' of the Work Force Comprehensive Personality Testing May Help Land the Right Job in a Hot Job Market One-in-Five Workers to Change Jobs in the New Year    The Saint Louis Front Page is owned and maintained by the Moore Design Group for the sole purpose of disseminating news and information about the Metropolitan Saint Louis area. Text or graphics may not be copied, rewritten or distributed in any manner whatsoever without written permission. For more information, contact editor@slfp.com All rights reserved world wide © 1996 - 2008 Moore Design Group .