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Economy & Work

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  • report

    As Jobs Crisis Spreads, Worries Climb the Economic Ladder

    Overview For the public, the continuing financial crisis has been overtaken by a jobs crisis. The proportion of Americans citing jobs or unemployment as the nation’s most important economic problem has more than quadrupled – from 10% to 42% – since early October and job worries now far surpass concerns over the financial crisis. People’s […]

  • report

    The Global Middle Class

    Views on Democracy, Religion, Values, and Life Satisfaction in Emerging Nations

  • report

    Support for Stimulus Plan Slips, But Obama Rides High

    Overview After weeks of intense debate over President Obama’s economic stimulus plan, a narrow majority of Americans (51%) who have heard about the $800 billion plan say it is a good idea, while 34% say it is a bad idea. In January, the balance of opinion regarding the plan was more positive: 57% of those […]

  • fact sheet

    Hiring Law for Groups Following a Higher Law: Faith-Based Hiring and the Obama Administration

    During his 2008 presidential campaign, then-candidate Barack Obama said that he intended to overturn President George W. Bush’s policy of allowing faith-based groups that receive federal funding to consider a potential employee’s religion when making hiring decisions. Although a 1972 civil rights law generally exempts religious groups from the prohibition on religious discrimination in hiring, […]

  • feature

    Income Distribution Within U.S. Religious Groups

    In his Jan. 20 inaugural address, President Barack Obama said, “The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our gross domestic product, but on the reach of our prosperity.” Surveys conducted by the Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life find that income varies greatly within and […]

  • report

    Economy, Jobs Trump All Other Policy Priorities In 2009

    Overview As Barack Obama takes office, the public’s focus is overwhelmingly on domestic policy concerns – particularly the economy. Strengthening the nation’s economy and improving the job situation stand at the top of the public’s list of domestic priorities for 2009. Meanwhile, the priority placed on issues such as the environment, crime, illegal immigration and […]