SAN FRANCISCO, CA - Speaking at the 2007 American Association for the Advancement of Science Annual Meetings, Professor Kea Tijdens, research coordinator of the international WageIndicator program, remarked, "Never before have we had the opportunity to take the pulse of workers and worklife in such a comprehensive manner. To collaborate on a global scale not only speaks to the opportunities we have as researchers but also the considerable potential for awareness and engagement."
The project is both an online resource and a research effort by which a global consortium of researchers are gathering qualitative and quantitative worklife data. By deploying surveys throughout countries, the rapidly growing data set allows for detailed cross-country analyses on wages and benefits, hours and conditions, occupation and industry trends, and more. Until now, no global-scale effort has made widely available either high-quality aggregate data or microdata.
The WageIndicator program currently operates 35 interactive websites in 17 countries including the UK, India, Brazil, and South Africa, and plans to extend operations to 75 countries, including China, by the beginning of 2008. Each website is adapted to the national labor market and cultural environment, and provides resources that are timely and relevant to its users.
Launched in the United States on Labor Day 2006 with partners such as BusinessWeek and the AFL-CIO, the American WorklifeWizard is headed by Richard Freeman, Herbert Ascherman Professor of Economics at Harvard University, who says that the aim of the WorklifeWizard is to become the premiere resource for worklife issues in the US and to establish a cutting-edge research tool for management, labor, policymakers, scholars, journalists, students, and others interested in the world of work.
The American site includes a popular "Ask the WorklifeWizard" feature through which survey respondents may submit a work-related question upon completing the 10-minute online survey. The WorklifeWizard, a Harvard-trained expert will then respond within seven business days. "At the Labor & Worklife Program, we are committed to helping people working from Wall Street to Main Street, from Maine to Arizona, regardless of political stripes, gender, race, ethnicity, education, or income," explains Terry Babcock-Lumish, Wertheim Fellow at Harvard Law School.
Accurate information for free
WageIndicator websites allow users to check their wages through a Salary Checker feature. When users complete the online survey, their submitted data is used to increase the number of occupations for which a salary indication can be provided, as well as for further analysis on topics ranging from gender roles and job security to immigration and globalization. Upon completion of the survey, respondents are entered in drawings to win a safari trip to South Africa and Amazon.com gift certificates.
The survey is accessible in all participating countries, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, all year round. In addition to the Salary Checker, the websites offer content on work and wages, sometimes a lifetime earnings check, a minimum wage check, featured occupation profiles (learn what it takes to pursue a CSI job!), a VIP paycheck (compare your salary to that of your favorite Hollywood/Bollywood star or Red Sox pitcher!). Online content is kept current by national WageIndicator teams.