Posted on 10/25/2021 2:51:39 AM PDT by EBH
Pay people enough money not to work, and surprisingly, they won’t work.
This is what I think is influencing many to not jump back into the low-skill labor market...Quality of Life and Conditions.
Many in my small business network HAVE increased wages to no avail in finding decent team members.
And I will say, ‘let’s be honest here,’ working in any sector of service industries can be a challenge to what one has to put up with from bosses and customers. I was in retail for several decades from cashier to District Manager and have seen it all. From bad staffing/managers to downright abusive customers or customers that just come in a trash the store without buying or accepting assistance.
We often over the years have even seen folks here on FR mock tipped employees because they fail to get tipped or have lousy wages etc. While many here will attempt to blame the business owner, it is a function of the consumer too. The demand for low priced goods and low priced luxury services influences profits and wages. In particular in the services sector it is tight margins. Many of my colleagues took the bait of a volume based service business and now are feeling the pinch of a tight labor market. And frankly, people who are not willing to jump back into the game because a client gets upset over a muddy pawprint on the floor on a rainy day after a dog walk. Yes, a single pawprint triggering an elitist customer demanding a refund and not to send that employee again.
I recently let a client go because of her attitude. We have systems in place to make it easy for our clients to book and schedule services 24/7. She insists on calling/texting/email and expecting an immediate response. She did this to me while working with an aggressive animal. Her distraction level was so intense even I was triggered.
Conditions matter and it is the consumer who sets those conditions.
Raise prices and wages.
That’s what inflation does.
Which means it’s also price problem
“IT places offering $11/hr”? LOL!
You can be a school bus driver in Fairfax County, Va for $22.91/hr + $3000 sign on bonus. Not bad for a retiree and the right neighborhoods basically have Stepford kids so not many issues there.
It’s just a customer service job, but I used to make double than that awhile ago doing similar jobs. Part of it is being cheap and most of it because Indians have taken over IT in this area and suppressed IT wages.
B.b.but where are those poor oppressed factory workers and coal miners who were laid off over the past 50 years that populists of the left and right have been telling me are “oppressed” and “need jobs.” (Crickets)
B.b.but where are those poor oppressed factory workers and coal miners who were laid off over the past 50 years that populists of the left and right have been telling me are “oppressed” and “need jobs.” (Crickets)
1.7 million are already here, be patient, it’s a supply chain issue. Wages only have to go up if you need the supply now. We aborted the localvsupply....of customers too.
The Amish made a killing in 2020 and 2021...
I would say all business. Olive garden was empty but had a 20 minute wait. Went to longhorn.
determine what the underlying issue really is?>>> Maybe the pandemic fear porn worked.
Wrote workers comp insurance for a dog walking company, payroll was amazing $80,000 minimum, one guy was making over $200,000. a year.
You are on to something.
Before 2020, work was the default. If you didn’t work, then you were either unemployed and looking, disabled in some way, or a deadbeat - to use a general term to cover all who choose not to work.
Now there is a new excuse — Fear.
For your protection and the protection of those around you, you are being forced not to work. There’s a new weight on the balance, and that weight is government sponsored fear.
If I am allowed to yell at a stranger for not wearing a mask that I need for MY protection, well then it’s certainly my right not to work at a place I am almost SURE will expose me to this plague.
Earlier, we would have laughed at such pretentiousness.
But today? It’s almost the work of angels not to work.
The same companies that claim to be unable to hire anyone pass by many qualified candidates. You can read stories of people who have applied to 50 or 60 jobs with qualifications suited for those jobs but they only get a couple of responses and one interview.
I know from speaking with some young people in our town that the on-line systems used for hiring by major corporations are flaky at best. I heard from one IT guy that their HR system had so many incoming resumes backed up that they just cleared the queue every Friday night, dumping hundreds of applications unseen by anyone at the company.
Some retailers are requiring multiple interviews, on-line screening, and a lengthy hiring process for entry level retail jobs. The hiring process seems to take longer than the average time an employee stays at the company.
Just looking at what the businesses are actually doing suggests maybe that they are more intent on keeping down staffing levels than they are hiring people.
I suspect the real "problem" is either businesses really don't want to hire people or the HR systems of major corporations have become so complicated that they can't effectively hire people.
I have heard from people who got the "Thanks for joining our team" email from a major mass retailer but then no further communications, and when they go in person to the store that they applied to work at the manager says "sorry, I can't help you since all the hiring is done through corporate".
There are many examples of this kind of situation. Supposedly desperate employers are passing by qualified applicants as they look for the optimal person defined by some computer model running in the HR department.
It’s been a few years since we used our regular Rover lady. She was so full all the time that she took herself off of the Rover scheduling function. But regulars knew to contact her directly. (All communications were thru Rover, so the company still got their cut.) The lady was reasonably priced, especially for two dogs (which we had at the time). She was pure gold. If she had raised rates...we still would’ve booked with her. I’ve referred her out several times. The guess-work math I’ve done tells me she makes pretty good money dog-sitting.
We only stopped using Rover because we made the decision to look for pet-friendly hotels when we travel. A little more effort involved dealing with the dogs on the trip...but for roughly the same amount of $$$, we get to enjoy their company. They’re our buddies...
From the article:
“I may never get those clients back,” Levy said”
It’s funny that the owner of a dog walking company knows that if you piss off your customers you lose them forever but CEOs of major companies like the NFL, Coke, Nike, etc. do not.
Small businesses can’t win.
We need help, but the jobs we used to be able to fill for $10 an hour now want $15 or more. My cost of goods has gone up about 25% in 6 months.
I used to be able to sell 36 printed t-shirts for $6.95 each and make 10% net. Now, just to make the same $.70 per shirt, I have to charge over $10 per shirt. Ink is more expensive. Parts for my equipment are either unavailable or much more expensive.
But continue to be a jerk and just tell me to pay my employees more. Yeah, that will help.
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