Hungry for a job

Peter Phau doesn't need to watch the news or read the paper to know unemployment is rising. He has seen it first hand.

As a volunteer at the St. Vincent de Paul food pantry in Franklin, Phau has watched over the summer as more and more unemployed people visit the pantry in an attempt to provide for their families.

The number of families served at each pantry, located at St. James on South 27th Street, has increased 25 percent over last year. In the past, most of the families who come for food have been low-income housing residents. This summer things have changed.

"There's been a surge of unemployed people," said Phau, a four-year volunteer.

Filling the pantry

The majority of the pantry's food comes from Second Harvest and Hunger Task Force, two hunger-relief organizations that distribute food to networks of pantries, homeless shelters and meal programs. It also receives donations from parishioners and other organizations.

Families are allowed to visit the pantry once a month and receive three weeks worth of food rationed based on the number of people in the household. Bags are filled with a variety of foods like canned goods, noodles, rice, meat, bread and produce.

In previous years, a typical pantry would serve 20 families. This summer there have consistently been at least 25 families at each pantry. In July, one pantry served 43 families, Phau noted.

Feeding the numbers

Franklin and Oak Creek unemployment rates in July both were nearly twice as high as they were a year ago and will continue to rise for at least the next few months, according to experts. Still, they remain significantly lower than the state and national unemployment rates, and should remain that way.

According to the most recent state figures, the unemployment rate in Franklin was 7.5 percent in July, compared with 3.8 percent in July 2008. That's the sixth lowest rate among the 31 Wisconsin municipalities tracked by the state Department of Workforce Development.

Oak Creek experienced a similar jump in its unemployment rate: from 4.2 percent in July 2008 to 8.1 percent in July 2009. While its unemployment rate is slightly higher than Franklin's, it is still 1.6 percent below the state average and 0.9 percent below the national average.

What to expect ahead

Cheryl Maranto, an associate professor at Marquette University, says unemployment rates in these cities and the rest of the state won't be lowering any time soon.

"Although there are some signs that the economy is starting to stabilize and get stronger in some areas, unemployment is a lagging indicator," she said. "So even once the economy overall gets better, it's going to be a while before unemployment actually goes down."

She credits this to our consumer-driven economy. Those who have lost their jobs are being very cautious about spending, she said. Even those who haven't lost their jobs are worried they're going to, so they've pulled back as well. Until this changes, unemployment rates will stay high.

"In the kind of economy that we've had where employers have had to let people go, they're not going to be anxious to rehire until they're sure that they're going to have the demand to keep people employed," she said.

Marc Levine, professor of economic development at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, agreed.

"I would guess that the unemployment rate will continue to tick up for the next three to four months," he said. "In October or so, maybe we'll start to see the beginning of a recovery and drops in the unemployment rate."

Suburban advantage

He added that the suburbs have actually been somewhat lucky - their unemployment rates have remained lower than the city of Milwaukee. Milwaukee's unemployment rate in June was 12.2 percent.

Education is a factor, he said.

"The education levels and skill levels of residents in suburban areas tend to be a little bit higher than the residents in the central city," Levine said. "As a consequence, the unemployment rate is lower in those areas."

About 41 percent of Franklin residents above the age of 25 had at least an associate degree in 2007, according to the latest U.S. Census Bureau data. In Oak Creek, 31 percent of residents had the same level of education, while only 26 percent in Milwaukee did.

Levine adds that since both Franklin and Oak Creek have been economic growth centers for metropolitan Milwaukee over the past decade, employment growth has been substantial and unemployment rates have remained rather low compared to other Milwaukee cities.

"You would expect these areas to have slightly lower unemployment rates in an economic slump as well," he said.

Despite these comparatively lower numbers, there are still more than 3,000 unemployed people in Franklin and Oak Creek, according to the state.

Working for food

Volunteers at the Franklin pantry have watched as this number has increased throughout the year and have worked hard to provide food for those in need.

"We really just want to help people," Phau said.

If expert predictions are correct, then Phau and the rest of the volunteers will continue to see the number of families each pantry serves grow well into the fall.

HOW TO FIND A JOB

If you're searching for a job, here are some tips to assist you taken from various employment and job-search Web sites.

Network - informally and formally

• Informal: contact everyone you know - friends, family, neighbors, college alumni and old coworkers. They may know someone who's hiring.

• Formal: Visit job fairs or business socials and use the Internet - discussion boards like the Job Search Forum and Web sites like LinkedIn are designed to help you find a job.

Go the extra mile

• There are hundreds of other people searching for a job just like you. After e-mailing your resume, make a phone call to make sure the right person gets it.

• If offered, always opt for an in-person interview. Give your name a face.

Update your resume

• Be specific about your experience and relate it to the job description of the position your after.

• Make it easy for employers to see why you're right for the job.

Local unemployment rates

Source: Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development. Rates are seasonally unadjusted.