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Posted on 04/05/2004 3:32:32 PM PDT by Willie Green
For education and discussion only. Not for commercial use.
A neighbor's number appeared on the caller ID screen, but there was no message. My wife phoned back to check the reason for the call as she's a frequent movie or lunch companion of the lady of the house.
But this time it was the husband who wanted to talk. He had been fired the day before after 18 years on the job as an engineer for a major company. No warning, just a routine summons to the boss' office on a weekday morning. He later said he was somewhat surprised by a human-resources type sitting in. Hello to those "uh, oh" feelings.
His job had been eliminated, he was told, and then he was ordered to clean out his desk and depart the premises, with a couple of security guards as escorts.
The man, of course, is not alone in what is becoming more and more routine across America, from schoolhouses to the packing plants and corporate offices. Call it downsizing, layoffs, position elimination, resource realignment, outsourcing or maybe your job fell to the latest hot political potato -- "offshoring." But face it, buster, you were just plain canned, and it hurts.
And it's going to hurt somebody come November if the situation doesn't begin to change. The jobless, naturally, take out their anger on the party in power. A few days ago, an Associated Press dispatch reported that unemployment rates have risen in nine of 17 "battleground" states. In one of the 17, Pennsylvania, the rate took a slight drop from 5.3 to 5.1 from January to February according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The nation's jobless rate went to 5.7 percent, up a tenth over last month. It showed creation of 308,000 jobs, viewed as good news but not necessarily when compared to the overall two million lost since George W. Bush took office in 2001. States that lost the most jobs were Missouri, Georgia, Ohio and Indiana. Blame Bush, the governor, the weather?
On that note, if the economy is to become the major election issue, the mess in Iraq has to become at least stabilized, unless frustrated Americans just tune it out. It is becoming a quagmire that cannot be totally abandoned for obvious reasons, but how much of recent horrors can Americans stomach? Barring the capture of Osama bin Laden a week before Election Day, the job situation may just decide a close race in November.
If "all politics is local," nothing is more local than your wallet or pocketbook, and those voters without jobs are going to vent their anger in some direction, notably with a lever (or touch pad), behind a curtain.
I don't know how my neighbor will fare between now and then. The average job search goes on for more than 20 weeks before a person finds new employment, or just gives up. Economists say the number of those saying "to heck with it" is growing. This malaise skews the true unemployment picture since those not actively seeking work are not counted as unemployed. If so, the rate would be closer to seven percent, say some economists.
Statistics are just that, but for those suddenly finding themselves out of a job the reaction is more visceral. There is bewilderment, usually followed by anger, then doubts of self-worth, frustration with a long-time job search and stress and worry if the looking drags on and on and unemployment pay dries up.
And the humiliation of being banished from the building with the security escorts won't be soon forgotten. The employee may have been the model of deportment, but fears of "going postal" retribution against superiors make it pretty standard, if heartless, policy these days.
If you've been toiling on the hard rockpile of life for a good while, you no doubt have friends, relatives or acquaintances who have lost their jobs. I can rattle off a few: My two best friends, my brother, two neighbors, my son, my wife and yours truly. All have either rebounded with new jobs or retired and work part-time.
But the initial shock is just that: "Why me?"
A lot of Americans are going to be looking at Mr. Bush during this campaign season and asking the same question, regardless of what happens in Iraq.
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Methot can be reached at: rikwrite@aol.com
I guess Willie just forgot.
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Total Employment is at it's highest level ever. I would like it explained to me how we have lost 2 million jobs?
I would think that total employment would have to go down not up to lose jobs.
The article forgot to mention he got fired for surfing porn.
His job had been eliminated, he was told, and then he was ordered to clean out his desk and depart the premises, with a couple of security guards as escorts.
This sounds made up.
Things have changed alot since I was a supervisor and had to endure reductions in force (RIFs) that were endemic with the aerospace industry. We were given instructions about time tables with a minimum of two weeks notice although most RIFs were four weeks to 90 days.
Nobody and I mean NOBODY was just "escorted out" on the same day. That was an HR nightmare, a lawsuit waiting to happen. That only happened when a person was fired for provable criminal behavior and they agreed to leave to avoid prosecution.
The guy who wrote this is not just a nitwit, he's a lying, lowlife, propagandist nitwit.
5.7% unemployment is among the best unemployment rates in the last 50 years and, as part of Pres. Bush's first term, is the BEST 1st term unemployment rate in 50 years.
The president needs to have a message entitled, "To the 95% of American who Have Jobs!" Then he should warn them of changing to Kerry who will surely cause them to lose the job that they have.
Where did you get this information?
"That's the spirit!"
Roy, the Nexus 6 Replicant in Blade Runner; right after Harrison Ford cranks him in the head with three foot length of pipe.
Seriously though, Good on ya!
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