What’s most important in the upcoming election? If you ask young voters, the answer to that question is entry-level jobs.
A recent poll conducted by Experience.com found that job creation is the most important issue in the current presidential debate when it comes to Generation Y voters, according to an article by BusinessWeek. Of the 12,900 respondents to the poll, 77 percent said entry-level job creation would factor into who they plan to vote for.
This isn’t all surprising, as the economy continues to decline. In September, non-farm payroll employment decreased by 159,000 jobs, the highest number of job cuts in more than five years, while the unemployment rate stayed steady at 6.1 percent. Major industries to lose jobs included construction, manufacturing and retail trade, while mining and healthcare added jobs, according to the United States Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics.
September’s cuts follow revised losses of 73,000 jobs in August and 67,000 in July and show the decline in employment is accelerating, according to an article by Reuters. Some 51,000 manufacturing jobs were lost last month on top of 56,000 cut in August, the 27th straight month in which manufacturers slashed their payrolls.
Job cuts were nearly across the board in September in every major category with the exception of government, which added 9,000 jobs.
“We’ve seen weaker data in history, but these look pretty decisively to be the beginning of something worse,” Pierre Ellis, senior economist with Decision Economics Inc. in New York, said in the article.
When asked to list the most important issues the next presidential administration will face, respondents to the poll more frequently chose the economy than any other issue, perhaps because it’s getting harder for new graduates to find work. Of those polled, 58 percent said economic stimulation was among the most important issues, while only 34 percent said global warming and climate concerns were more important.
Of the 11,000 Generation Y participants who chose to reveal who they plan to vote for, 61 percent said they plan on voting for Obama/Biden, while only 21 percent said they would vote for McCain/Palin.
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