Citation URL: http://www.urban.org/BLindsayLowell

Recent policy reports claim the United States is falling behind other nations in science and math education and graduating insufficient numbers of scientists and engineers. Review of the evidence and analysis of actual graduation rates and workforce needs does not find support for these claims. U.S. student performance rankings are comparable to other leading nations and colleges graduate far more scientists and engineers than are hired each year. Instead, the evidence suggests targeted education improvements are needed for the lowest performers and demand-side factors may be insufficient to attract qualified college graduates.

The Department of Labor, in general, and the Wage and Hour Division, in particular, face several enforcement challenges. One is the long-standing issue of obtaining compliance given the mismatch between Department resources and the number of firms covered by various labor laws. Another is the expansion in low-wage jobs and informal work in sectors of the economy where violations of federal and state regulatory regimes are common. This report describes the feasibility, challenges, and merits of conducting random surveys of firm compliance and suggests a number of concrete steps the Department can take to further institutionalize compliance monitoring.

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