Increasingly Unequal Wages . It is well known that the bottom has fallen out of the labor market for workers with a high school education or less. The reasons are not well understood, but all observers agree that augmenting the skills of persons on the lowest rung of the ladder is an important part of any solution. Difficulties Some Youth Have in Settling Down. Racial Disparities .
Racial differences remain sharp in the labor market.
And considerably larger proportions of African Americans and Hispanics work at poverty-level wages than do whites. Adult Displacement . A growing fraction of layoffs are permanent, with a record 75 percent of those laid off in 1992-1993 not expected to return to their jobs. The evaluation literature provides guidance on what works and what doesn't within the context of employment and training policy as we know it today. Youth Youth employment and training policy aims to keep youth in school longer, improve the transition from school to work, and assist school dropouts having difficulty finding jobs.