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37 °F Forecast | Road Cams Thursday, December 16, 2004 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend October 21, 2004 More than 60 people formed a symbolic �unemployment line� Wednesday outside the state Employment Department�s Medford office to protest Oregon�s continuing high jobless rate. Mail Tribune / Bob Pennell Line of the times Pink-slip action meant to symbolize plight of state’s unemployed By MEG LANDERS Mail Tribune Dee Griffin has been striking out in the job market for a long time. "I’ve been unemployed since October of last year," the 43-year-old Medford resident said Wednesday. "I’ve gone through most of my savings. I have like $40 left." Griffin, who was laid off as a production technician at Drill Doctor in Ashland, said she’s been applying for jobs ever since, but competition for work is stiff. Griffin was just one of more than 60 people who formed a two-block-long symbolic unemployment line outside the Oregon Employment Department office on Oakdale Avenue in Medford. They chanted "Where are the jobs?" and held signs reading "Stop the spread of pink slips." Advertisement Organizers said the demonstration was intended to highlight the latest state unemployment figures, released Oct. 14. The Employment Department reported the state’s unemployment rate dropped from 7.4 percent in August to 7.3 percent in September. The national unemployment rate was 5.4 in both August and September. Some say the economic recovery needs to pick up speed. "We’re trying to highlight the fact the Oregon’s in the middle of a job crisis," said one of the event organizers, Bernie Pollack with the AFL-CIO in Oregon. Pollack said the event was not connected to the presidential campaign, but rather was a way for local people to illustrate a statewide problem. "It puts a human face to this problem," he said. "There’s more to it than statistics — these are families that are really suffering." Oregon's rate has now been highest or second highest in the nation for 38 months, since July 2001, according to Guy Tauer, regional economist with the state Employment Department. The figures released last month were no different. "We have seen in Oregon a bit of a slowdown in job growth in the past few months," Tauer said. He said Oregon typically adds more than 10,000 jobs in September. This year the number of new jobs created in the month was 5,900. He said the numbers can be misleading, because while there hasn’t been normal job growth, there has been population growth. That means the unemployment percentage could remain steady while the number of unemployed workers goes up. "You just have to use the data carefully and not pay too much attention to one month’s numbers," said Tauer. Not all those standing in Wednesday’s line were unemployed. "I’m a postal worker and I’ve got a job," said Jim Alexander, who works at the Medford post office and is president of the Southern Oregon Central Labor Council (the local chapter of the AFL-CIO). Alexander said he has several unemployed friends and family members, and would like to see more of an effort nationwide to create and protect full-time jobs with benefits. He said he’s seen a shift within the post office toward giving full-time positions to temporary employees who receive no benefits. "If there’s a career job there, let’s have a career job there, let’s not temp it out." He said he hoped Wednesday’s demonstration would highlight the need to create and protect full-time employment. Reach reporter Meg Landers at 776-4481 or e-mail [email protected] . Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2004 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Opportunities