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Old 05-07-2012, 04:17 PM
 
1,167 posts, read 2,166,102 times
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You constantly here that X number of jobs are created every month but if you took the number of jobs that pay a livable wage, were full time, had benefits, weren't temp jobs, what percentage would that be of the jobs being created?

Wages are going to be permanently depressed. I don't see any in that would change that. Jobs you can actually support yourself on are drying up.
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Old 05-07-2012, 04:32 PM
 
750 posts, read 1,444,358 times
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As I have pointed out many times most of the future job growth will be of low quality. Think part time temp freelance things like cashier home health aid ect. Most of the job growth the last 3 years has been part time and temp work. The BLS reports 7 out of ten jobs the next ten years will be low wage service jobs. This is the future not living wage jobs with benefits.
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Old 05-07-2012, 04:46 PM
 
28,455 posts, read 85,157,040 times
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I suspect the global trends are influencing this more than anything that either "good guy" type "green energy/ sustainable" entrepreneurs OR "labor union friendly politicians" OR even "screw the little guy" type corporate fat cats can hope to shift things....

No one sems to be able to crack the secret code to figure out how deal with the fact the long lead that the US had over a war ravaged Western Europe/Japan post WWII or an ideologically backward Communist Bloc during the Cold War is OVER... To have any hope of having a something close to our current standards of living we had better wake up and learn the lessons of Switezeland and specialize in the kinds of goods & services that are "highly valued" ...

Even if we did shift more resources to things of greater precision / complexity / luxury there will probably never be much more than 3 out 10 new jobs in those categories given the size of the US population and the fact that lower income types tend to have bigger families than the better educated high salaried members of the workforce...

Sad thing is that even as Europe deals with the failure of their nanny state too many US politicians are trying to falsely sell more such "don't worry about paying for it" cradle-to-grace handouts to stupid Americans that seem to have lost any faith in their own ability to take responsibility for bettering themselves.
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Old 05-07-2012, 05:14 PM
 
Location: Metro Detroit, Michigan
29,699 posts, read 24,780,162 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by chet everett View Post
To have any hope of having a something close to our current standards of living we had better wake up and learn the lessons of Switezeland and specialize in the kinds of goods & services that are "highly valued" ...
Countries like Switzerland and Germany and even Japan have a rock solid core heavy manufacturing base, dealing mostly with high value work. I find it strange that farmers in America must turn to manufacturers in Switzerland to have their artisan cowbells made. Part of the problem... Our heavy manufacturing base has eroded, and many of the trade programs like the one I attended in high school have been closed down. Had I not had that experience in high school, I would likely be like many of the unemployed or underemployed college grads today.

None the less, we have let all our high value work slip between our fingers. What's is left has been marginalized and cheapened by the bean counters. The focus is on reducing the costs, even at the expense of the workers, and you simply will not yield quality made goods with such a strategy. Of course, what the point in wanting to make anything for a living when the corporations primary focus is sending it to some slave wage nation? Pretty soon, all the work will have to go there because there are not enough young people with the interest, desire, or skills to do the work anymore. We've sent them all off to college and left them drowning in debt. Hard to start life this way, or have a sound consumer based economy.

Yes, I do think the American corporate strategy shares in the blame to some extent.
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Old 05-07-2012, 08:06 PM
 
5,500 posts, read 10,500,424 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Megadell View Post
You constantly here that X number of jobs are created every month but if you took the number of jobs that pay a livable wage, were full time, had benefits, weren't temp jobs, what percentage would that be of the jobs being created?

Wages are going to be permanently depressed. I don't see any in that would change that. Jobs you can actually support yourself on are drying up.
People need to cut lifestyle is you were to believe your assumption is true.
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Old 05-07-2012, 08:07 PM
 
137 posts, read 266,601 times
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Actually, average wages have been rising for the last year or so. And I work as a contractor in IT... Make good money that way, they are no less jobs than any others.

If you decide to fill yourself with negativity, don't be surprised if you fail.
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Old 05-07-2012, 08:24 PM
 
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
44,340 posts, read 80,658,912 times
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There will always be plenty of low-wage retail and service jobs, but checking the Sunday paper yesterday there were 3 pages of jobs, including many at Microsoft, Amazon and the like that paid well with full benefits, and very few that were anywhere near minimum wage. Perhaps those employers don't want to pay for ads but there are definitely lots of good jobs available for those that are qualified.
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Old 05-07-2012, 08:53 PM
 
Location: Metro Detroit, Michigan
29,699 posts, read 24,780,162 times
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I would actually like to know what type of employers are offering minimum wage. Can't say I've ever seen a job ad advertising it.
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Old 05-07-2012, 09:24 PM
 
808 posts, read 1,676,756 times
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Yea, maybe not minimum wage, but sub 10 an hour might as well be minimum wage. Either way it can't pay for anything. And until you get to 12 an hour, you can't live on it. And this is assuming it's full time.
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Old 05-07-2012, 09:25 PM
 
808 posts, read 1,676,756 times
Reputation: 813
Quote:
Originally Posted by Gatornation View Post
People need to cut lifestyle is you were to believe your assumption is true.
But cut lifestyle do you mean live on welfare and pray you don't get sick or injured? I'd be happy, thrilled with an entry level 12 buck an hour office job. But those go to the managers who were laid off with 10 years experience.

And yes, I am very cynical. I apply to every job posting I see, but I'm still cynical. When every job posted requires years of experience to even be considered, it's hard not to be.
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