#LaborDay #jobs #employers #employees #coronavirus #COVID19 #FlattenTheCurve
On this “unusual” Labor Day, “workers are in demand, but relatively scarce. (They are) enticed by incentives but scared of infection, constrained by child-care needs, while attracted by a more elastic workplace.”
So writes Michael E. Kanell, business and economics reporter for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in his Labor Day, 2021, article.
In that same edition of the Atlanta paper, Matt O’Brien and Paul Wiseman write about artificial intelligence (robots) handling a lot of service tasks once performed by humans. In their Associated Press article, they cite the example of a robot voice assistant at a Los Angeles Arby’s restaurant taking orders and relaying them to the line cooks.
The coronavirus pandemic is forcing changes in the labor market, giving employees more leverage, as we discussed previously, while replacing some with machines, not just in manufacturing, but the service industries.
Kanell writes that wage disparities between upper- and lower-echelon employees are still wide, with many lower-echelon workers still unable to afford the median rent in Atlanta of $1,488 per month.
But with all the talk of raising the minimum wage, it’s being done in the marketplace rather than in government.
Big companies like Target, Walgreens Walmart at CVS, as well as smaller employers like the Frazer Center in Atlanta, have declared $15 per hour as their base, or minimum, wage, Kanell writes.
Why? The pandemic is making people hesitant to go back to work, unless they have higher wages, more flexibility and more protection from getting sick.
TheHub recently opened a distribution center outside of Atlanta, with 22 employees. It starts workers at $16.65 an hour, plus a $1,000 sign-on bonus for new employees. It also includes medical benefits and matching contributions to workers’ 401(k) accounts, Kanell writes.
Meanwhile, other employers, per the Associated Press article, are figuring out ways to handle lower-wage tasks without people. A machine doesn’t take sick time, vacations or other interruptions humans require, the article says.
It boils down to this: the changing workplace the pandemic has induced is resulting in higher pay, more benefits, more flexibility and, often, better jobs for many workers.
These changes could last forever, since diseases have no time limits or expiration dates. When one disease is mitigated, another could follow. The overall economy could see a huge benefit as people get paid more.
If you are not seeing the kind of progress in your job (career) that you want to see, there are programs out there that can allow you to earn an income, even from home, without requiring any specific education, experience or background. Potentially, these programs can eventually allow you to say goodbye to your awful job, if that’s what you have. Or, if you’ve been out of work for a time, they could robustly get you back on your feet – even, perhaps, make you dance for joy.
To learn about one of the best such programs, message me.
Meanwhile, we will keep reading (and writing) about workplace changes caused by the pandemic.
These changes could revamp lives in ways never imagined even two years ago. Many lives will change for the better. Some may not, so those folks will need alternatives.
Here’s a big chance for you to initiate the change(s) in your life that you want. You’ve always had the power to do it, but it may be more urgent, and obvious, now.
Take advantage of it. Use your new leverage to your advantage.
Peter