LANSING – Though officials for the last several years have raised concerns about the high unemployment rate in Michigan, especially compared to other states, the greater concern should be the growth in low-wage and poverty-wage jobs, said the Michigan League for Human Services in a report released over the weekend.

Though unemployment since 2003 has been consistently higher than it was 1993-2002, those rates have still been significantly below the last high unemployment period of 1979-1992.

But with the loss of manufacturing jobs in the state, those who are working are more often working in jobs that barely lift them out of poverty, the report said. More than 20 percent of workers in the state make less than the minimum to keep a family of four out of poverty, and the report said that statistic has held since 1980.

“In May 2006, four out of the six occupations with the highest employment in Michigan had a median hourly wage below the poverty wage for a family of four,” the report said. “Those four occupations alone comprised 419,350 jobs, or 10 percent of all non-farm jobs in Michigan.”

The report said those workers are supporting families. Some 40 percent of minimum wage workers are the sole providers for a family. And 68 percent are age 20 or older.

The League also argued that federal poverty levels are an inaccurate measure because they still do not mean self-sufficiency. The federal poverty line in Wayne County is $16,242 for a family of three, but the League said that same family must actually make $40,252 to meet all of its needs without some outside assistance.

The education level of workers in the state has increased, with 59 percent having some post-secondary education in 2005, up from 36.2 percent in 1984. “Because wages increase with higher levels of education, this can be seen as a trend in the right direction. However, the number of Michigan workers with credentials such as a two-year or four-year degree or a vocational certificate is far from sufficient to meet the needs of the labor market,” the report said.

While the League praised some recent efforts such as increasing the minimum wage and creating the Jobs, Education and Training Program, it said more needs to be done to bring more families out of poverty.

Among the recommendations is further expanding programs to assist parents in getting, and getting to, jobs. The JET program needs to reach more unemployed and under-employed adults, the report said. And the working poor need more assistance for transportation through more public transit.

It also recommended increasing childcare subsidies to match market rates. The current maximum grant is $2.50 an hour, but market rates top $3 an hour for toddlers, the report said. “Regular increases to the subsidy to account for inflation would allow needy families to have access to more reliable, higher quality care,” it said.

The group also called for increases in both the Family Independence Program grant, currently $489 a month for a family of three, and the unemployment insurance maximum grant to bring those grants closer to the poverty line.

The group called for expanding health care for uninsured families. It particularly pushed the Michigan First Health Care Plan proposed by Governor Jennifer Granholm to use Medicaid funds to subsidize health coverage for working poor families. “Over 80 percent of the uninsured households surveyed in 2005 had at least one family member who was employed,” the report said.

This story was provided by Gongwer News Service. To subscribe, click on Gongwer.Com

a>>