TUE AM News: Higher education leads to higher pay for Wisconsinites, report shows; Ice cream plant in Madison responds to OSHA citations

January 30, 2024

— Wisconsin residents with a bachelor’s degree tend to earn substantially more money over the course of their career than those with only a high school degree, according to a recent UW-Madison report.

But the gender wage gap persists.

The Division of Extension report was authored by Prof. Steven Deller, an economist with the university’s Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics.

He found the average earnings for a working person with just a high school degree is $40,104, compared to $45,729 for those with “some college” or two-year associate degree. But that amount rises to $61,428 for those with a bachelor’s degree.

Based on a 40-year career, lifetime earnings range from $1.6 million for high school graduates and $1.73 million for those with associate degrees to $2.5 million for bachelor’s degree holders, based on his analysis.

“When examining the Wisconsin-wide average across different levels of educational attainment, there is a clear upward movement as education increases,” Deller wrote.

Still, the report also highlights exceptions such as higher paying jobs in the trades. As one example, a plumber in the state had median earnings of $71,690 in 2022. That profession typically requires a high school diploma and a training apprenticeship. By comparison, early childhood education administrators had median earnings of $46,910, despite requiring a bachelor’s degree.

Deller also found pay differs widely by gender in Wisconsin, averaging $56,462 for men and $41,920 for women. He wrote that the wage gap is “persistent across educational attainment levels.” While earnings for women rise along with education level, this disparity remains.

For those with just a high school diploma, men’s earnings are 33.7% higher on average. For those with a bachelor’s degree, men earn 28.8% more than women, according to the report.

“This means that the decision to invest in education does have a gender dimension,” Deller wrote. “Whether this increase in average earnings from pursuing higher education justifies the associated costs is a decision unique to each person.”

See the full report.

See more coverage of Deller’s work.

— A Madison-based ice cream plant says it will take “necessary steps to ensure the highest standards of safety” after an OSHA investigation found numerous violations of worker safety standards.

The U.S. Department of Labor yesterday announced OSHA has issued a dozen “serious citations” and proposed nearly $150,000 in penalties for AJLS Enterprises Inc., which operates as Schoep’s Ice Cream. The company has more than 250 employees.

The federal investigation was prompted by a report that workers at the facility were being exposed to a hazardous chemical used in refrigeration called anhydrous ammonia. Exposure to the material can cause respiratory damage and burns to the skin and eyes.

Investigators found the business didn’t have sufficient safety procedures in place to control the release of dangerous chemicals, according to DOL.

The plant also didn’t have proper machine guarding or “lockout/tagout” procedures for securing machinery, failed to train workers in these procedures and didn’t have a written hazard communication plan, among other violations such as fall hazards.

In response to the OSHA citations, a company spokesperson said the business takes the safety of its employees and workplace very seriously.

“Currently, we are completing an OSHA investigation and are fully cooperating with all necessary procedures to address any opportunities for improvement that are identified,” the spokesperson said in an emailed statement.

AJLS Enterprises has a 15-day window after receiving the citations and penalties to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA’s local area director, or contest the agency’s findings, DOL notes in its release.

Chad Greenwood, OSHA area director in Madison, says employers “must continually evaluate their engineering processes” and train their workers to operate equipment safely.

“Every employer should embrace safety and health as a core value in their establishment,” Greenwood said in a statement.

See the DOL release.

— Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez, a registered nurse who holds master’s degrees in nursing and public health, will chair the Governor’s Task Force on the Healthcare Workforce.

Gov. Tony Evers announced last week in his State of the State his plans for the task force, which will study challenges for the state’s health care workforce and to recommend actions he’ll consider for the 2025-27 budget.

Evers yesterday signed the executive order creating the task force, noting Wisconsin faces a potential deficit of 20,000 nurses by 2040.

“My administration will continue pursuing every pathway and seeking every avenue to address our workforce challenges without legislative action, just as we have for five years,” Evers said in a statement. “This task force, led by the lieutenant governor, is going to play a critical role in our administration’s work toward real, impactful solutions to alleviate the burdens experienced by folks in our healthcare workforce now and into the future.”

The task force will also include Department of Workforce Development Secretary Amy Pechacek or a designee, Department of Health Services Secretary Kirsten Johnson or a designee, higher education representatives and other Evers appointees.

Along with an analysis of industry challenges, the task force’s action plan will include strategies for improving patient care and reducing the burden on health care workers, ideas for bolstering the health workforce and recommendations for new or modified programs and state statutes, according to the order. The report is due to be delivered Sept. 1.

See the release.

For more of the most relevant health care news, reports on groundbreaking research in Wisconsin, links to top stories and more, sign up today for the free daily Health Care Report from WisPolitics and WisBusiness.com.

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— The state Public Service Commission is offering funding for efforts to expand telecommunications services in Wisconsin through a series of grant programs.

The agency yesterday announced the funding opportunities, spread across three different programs.

Applications are due March 7 for the Nonprofit Access Grant program, which provides funding for nonprofits to support affordable access to internet access and other communications services for low-income households and those with disabilities. The PSC will award up to $500,000 through this program.

Meanwhile, the agency will start taking applications Thursday for the Lifeline Outreach Grant Program, with the deadline set for March 19. The PSC says it will award up to $250,000 through this program, which aims to reduce the cost of telecommunications services for low-income residents.

Applications for the Telemedicine Grant Program are being accepted from Feb. 8 to April 2, with a total of $1 million in grant funding available. This program offers funding for nonprofit clinics, hospitals or public health agencies to buy equipment used for tech-enabled medical services and boost medical care access for rural and underserved areas.

See more details in the release.

— The deadline to apply for this year’s Governor’s Business Plan Contest is Wednesday, the Wisconsin Technology Council announced.

Entrepreneurs who take part in the competition are tasked with writing an initial 250-word business plan and expanding that idea as they advance in the contest. Dozens of judges from various sectors in Wisconsin will score entries and offer feedback to applicants.

Since the contest began in 2004, the Tech Council has received more than 4,660 entries and awarded about $2.8 million in cash and services such as legal, accounting, office space and marketing.

See more contest info and apply.

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