Inflation or price gouging

[7milesup]

Well that's an easy one . It's because I bought a diesel truck !

I literally just sold my diesel and bought a Hemi.

 

[Navy Chief]

They are everywhere. And the argument that people are staying home because the government is sending out their economic recovery checks is no longer valid.
Andersen Windows is a large window manufacturer based not too far away from me. I drove by one of their smaller plants a few weeks ago and there was a huge hiring banner on the outside of the building. Starting wage was $26/hr with yearly bonuses of $56K. That is over $100k to go put windows together. Nearly every business around here has a sign out looking for employees. The current unemployment rate is 2.8% in WI. I always figured that at least 5% of the population was unemployable.

I know manufacturing jobs in my area are tough to keep filled, where my son works they get new employees that stay long enough to renew their unemployment then leave again. Good paying job for the area $19 an hour starting pay with benefits and time and a half on weekends. There are now hiring banners on almost every warehouse and manufacturing plant in the area that have been hanging there for years, nobody wants an actual job.

A lot of the younger people don't seem to have an interest in having a job, they have an interest in having the government support them while they play video games and watch "reality" television shows.

Sent from my Pixel 5 using Tapatalk

 

[Beckerkumm]

Generally the labor participation rate is down which is a more relevant number than unemployment. What isn't discussed often is the fact that due to the shortage, workers that might be let go for a variety of reasons, productivity, attitude, etc, remain employed. Good employees are rewarded well in this market and not so good are still employed. Dave

 

[jwmay]

I drove by one of their smaller plants a few weeks ago and there was a huge hiring banner on the outside of the building.

Completely agree. The two companies I've worked for have had banners hanging for years. They are literally always short handed, and have been since about 2014. Been traveling a little for work recently. There are 4-8 highway advertising signs offering between 18 and 30 dollar per hour direct hire opportunities in that 35 mile stretch of road.

 

[woodchucker]

They are everywhere. And the argument that people are staying home because the government is sending out their economic recovery checks is no longer valid.
Andersen Windows is a large window manufacturer based not too far away from me. I drove by one of their smaller plants a few weeks ago and there was a huge hiring banner on the outside of the building. Starting wage was $26/hr with yearly bonuses of $56K. That is over $100k to go put windows together. Nearly every business around here has a sign out looking for employees. The current unemployment rate is 2.8% in WI. I always figured that at least 5% of the population was unemployable.

I retired. I was an Oracle Database Administrator. I was being offered less than 1/2 of what I was making. Some as little as 1/4.. I haven't made that little since the 70s. Some jobs are offering great money. Others are taking advantage of the situation. I was let go July 7th 2020, when I was let go, my wife looked up the company and the federal money to keep people. They had just received the 1.5 million dollars. They took the money and ran. We were a medical imaging software / hardware company. We were not suffering from the pandemic. We were suffering from bad management.

In my field many companies were trying to take advantage of the situation by lowering wages. I decided to retire... why deal with the 24x7 on call, the stress, the really horrible management. I didn't want to retire. I expected to work into my late 70s. I liked what I did, just not the people. Many of the young had no work ethic. Our top level managers were a bunch of back stabbing climbers, and some of their decision making was to make the other manager look bad... so much for being a company person. I could go on, but I am enjoying retirement. Years ago I worked with a super group of people. We were very successful, until management wanted in. we went from about 30 people to over 200 in short time. We went from successful to over bloated do nothing. All these managers came on brought their people in, and well, they killed the project. We were now losing money, instead of making money.

 

[7milesup]

nobody wants an actual job.

A lot of the younger people don't seem to have an interest in having a job, they have an interest in having the government support them while they play video games and watch "reality" television shows.

I'm sorry but that is complete BS. That type of logic is what I call "bar logic"; guys sitting around at a bar making up "facts".
I work part time for a manufacturing company (I'm in R&D). We have some really great young folks on the floor that have been there for quite some time. This belief that people are better off sitting at home because "the government pays more" is not based on actual facts and reality. I could say that the states that get the most government aid are red, but I won't.

 

[jwmay]

In my field many companies were trying to take advantage of the situation by lowering wages.

To be frank, the jobs I'm talking about are all "unskilled" jobs. No degree, no education. I couldn't speak to skilled labor jobs at all. In manufacturing, you can usually get into skilled labor positions with nothing more than longevity. So, these are "great" opportunities for young people. But we really can't keep them. I don't know why. My own kids flatly refused to even consider factory work. (Not even for a summer job!) That's two kids who can thank manufacturing for literally every thing they have! With a Dad who has been preaching the gospel of Mike Rowe their entire lives. So...idk.

 

[jwmay]

This belief that people are better off sitting at home because "the government pays more" is not based on actual facts and reality.

There's "some" truth to it. We could make a smidge more on unemployment during the height of the pandemic. But it was a very short window of opportunity. And catching up on your healthcare coverage upon return would probably negate that difference. I can't say for sure. I didn't get any time off. Lol This is just stories from coworkers who did take time off. Don't think I'm disagreeing with you. Just saying, there's a little truth in every fiction.

 

[addertooth]

The above points of view are all viable, for the geography they are at. We have had some local fast food locations close for a few days, because nobody wanted to show up. So yes, on the lower end of the pay scale, there is a serious problem with apathy among the (mostly young) workers.

My wife works at the lower end of medical. When the vaccine mandates came out, she started to look at all the listings for "help wanted desperately" which were non-medical. There were a lot of medical workers who fled the market when the deadline for the mandates were approaching. She learned that a lot of the job listings were phantom or "prospecting" listings. The employers were not as motivated to hire as they *sounded* in their listings. In some cases they were listed as 9 to 5 jobs, but after you applied you learn they were for graveyard shift. Most were shy to mention rate of pay until after the interview.

I work in technology. When I go on websites for jobs, the companies give a laundry list of Degrees, Certifications, and verifiable job experience that only a handful of people on the globe would match. Many of those listings are for that 1 in a million employee. They may be hoping he comes across their listing. The more typical "center of mass" tech employee will not be likely to get a call back. I also realize some companies are actually hoping nobody responds, so they can get the government to give them a H1 visa to hire a foreign worker. Then they will accept a far less qualified foreign worker, at about 1/3rd the US worker cost. It is how they play the game to obtain that visa (you create a bloated listing with a laundry list of requirements, then whine to the government you can't find any qualified American applicants).

In short, across the spectrum there are a LOT of companies which say they are hiring, and desperate for workers. But it is not exactly as it appears. In the 1970s, a person could go out and find a job in a single day. I am not talking about fast food. The industries have changed, and 1 day hires are now the exception, rather than the rule.

 

[woodchucker]

I work in technology. When I go on websites for jobs, the companies give a laundry list of Degrees, Certifications, and verifiable job experience that only a handful of people on the globe would match. Many of those listings are for that 1 in a million employee. They may be hoping he comes across their listing. The more typical "center of mass" tech employee will not be likely to get a call back. I also realize some companies are actually hoping nobody responds, so they can get the government to give them a H1 visa to hire a foreign worker. Then they will accept a far less qualified foreign worker, at about 1/3rd the US worker cost. It is how they play the game to obtain that visa (you create a bloated listing with a laundry list of requirements, then whine to the government you can't find any qualified American applicants).

I lived it for years. In this area, that game is the rule not the exception. The Oracle DBA positions are managed now by Indian's in many cases. Some are very good/smart, gifted. But even like in this country, 10% carry the weight..

Just for education So let me say I am not talking ALWAYS, I am talking that this happens.: The problem with Indian management, is they mostly want to hire other Indians. We learned that the cast system is dead in Elementary schoolj in the early 60s. But that is far from the truth. It still exists today. I have watched while other people did the work for one Indian, I asked and found out he was a higher cast member, so the lower cast members were doing his work.. I was shocked.