"Americans are worried about paying their bills and taking care of their families - and this poll clearly shows what scares them the most," explained Glenn W. Dowd, partner, Labor & Employment practice, Day Pitney LLP and ELA member. "The campaign issues that will surely draw the closest voter scrutiny will be the personal ones that address healthcare and job security. We believe that future legislation coming out of this election year will focus on and address these concerns."
American workers, a mix of full-time (83%) and part-time (17%) employees over age 18, ranked their top issues among a group of eight workplace challenges presented in the poll, conducted for ELA by the market research firm Reed Group, of Philadelphia. The margin of error based on the sample size is +/- 2.9% at a 95% confidence level. The poll results revealed:
- 51% are worried about finding a new job if they lose their current one
- 45% are troubled by the increasing cost to workers of employer-sponsored healthcare plans
- 37% fear losing a job due to poor economic conditions
- 28% are concerned about fewer job opportunities due to outsourcing
Besides ranking workplace-related issues, the respondents evaluated presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama regarding their ability to promote policies to address these workplace issues. In the four areas (noted above) causing workers the greatest concern, respondents said that they believed Senator Obama was more likely to address those challenges by margins of:
- 51% to McCain’s 20% regarding tackling the lack of affordable healthcare
- 32% to McCain’s 21% regarding the ability to find a new job
- 40% to McCain’s 25% in terms of controlling increasing healthcare insurance costs
- 40% to McCain’s 25% with respect to dealing with the possibility of job loss due to national economic woes
McCain fared significantly more favorably in the poll (60% vs. 13%) when workers were asked which candidate will more likely be able to control illegal immigration. In the survey, Obama led by wide margins when it came to issues such as making it harder for US companies to outsource jobs overseas (51% vs. 15%) and dealing with the lack of renewable energy sources (44% vs. 30%)
Dr. Ted Reed, ELA’s Survey Director, noted that ELA conducted a similar survey prior to the Pennsylvania primary in April. “Comparing the two polls, we see that workers continue to rate job security and healthcare cost issues as their top workplace priorities for the upcoming election.” He noted that unlike the April poll, this latest ELA poll represents the first time workers were asked to express their candidate preference for tackling troublesome workplace issues.
