Headed Straight To Hell (I)

Headed Straight To Hell (I) - Just imagine work is available abundantly, but no one shows up. Unthinkable in countries where corruption has overtaken all life and where death has become a desirable option for there's absolutely nothing like steady work, safety, regulations, security, fixed income, etc. - Just yesterday, my husband needed his car towed and talked to the driver, a Guyanese guy, who couldn't thank his lucky stars enough for his dream of a brand- new start in the great United States of American having made come true. Although I personally can't quite perk up with respect to feeling, let alone expressing as much gratitude - after all, in many ways, life in Austria compares to life here, - I found this little tale uplifting and refreshing on top. - For about 18 months or so, I have very well been noticing a tremendous shift as far as the domestic economy is concerned. After several years of recession, it is finally up and going, so to speak. To be more precise, the US economy is meanwhile soaring at a record high, and this should essentially put the entire nation into a jubilant as well as confident mood especially in the light of the future trend which projects to be picking up even more, in fact, way beyond its present state. There is just one major problem in all of this. The man power is missing as incredible as this might sound. Anywhere we go, we're stumbling across more and more signs, notes and notifications about job vacancies these days. By now, literally all over the place immediate help is wanted or rather needed. Shops, home- improvement markets such as Home Depot or Lowes and even entire malls seem to be running on half or just a third of their original work force. As a result, more and more customers are experiencing greater delays in being handled in a timely fashion leading to an exponentially increasing amount of discontentment because those "few" scattered remaining employees more often than not seem to be meeting the basic service standards anymore. I suppose, the main reason for that downward spiral is to be found in many retail places being franchised nowadays and hence outsourced one way or another. Their staffers frequently prove to be entirely misplaced and thus most unfit in terms of qualification, skills, motivation and zeal. I'm thinking of various major fast food chains in this particular regard. Chaos usually describes it the best way how those types of restaurants are managed and run. Needless to say, throughout the country the occupational incentive is partially or even completely absent mostly due to such ridiculously poor pay. However, I find it even more conflicting and alarming that people are no longer trained long and well enough which does not just affect a few but rather most job fields. Since I've been there and done it myself, let me second that retail is definitely one of the toughest sectors across the entire job market. I can only imagine how much things have worsened since the late 80s and early 90s when I was still working in the service industry. - Anyway, taking into consideration that essentially more folks will soon be (badly) needed than are presently employed all across the work fields, I honestly can't stop wondering why all those vacant positions can no longer be filled adequately, much less sufficiently enough. No question there, nowadays, life mainly revolves around cost, affordability and last but not least, profit. Here's just another perplexing example: Yesterday morning, my hubby spent quite some time on the phone trying to find someone who not only cuts wood but also delivers it. He was told that due to overall cost- ineffective labor and shortage of both wood and personell, ever the more guys are pulling out of the wood business for good. Really? Since when are we facing a serious shortage of wood? Lack of help sounds much more logical when we talk about labor versus profit. Never mind, I'm still asking you, why is this so? You got it, this is because people tend to become lazier and often shy away from work altogether. And why do you think such is the case to begin with? Right, because it looks to me that states such as NY (not for nothing the "Vampire" rather than the Empire State) and California heavily invest into a Welfare system which is entirely corrupted and therefore failing miserably. You show me anyone who has been carried through times of alleged hardship in such a cushioned manner for a longer period of time and who is willing to eventually get back on their feet only to end up working in such appallingly low- income jobs putting an entire nation to shame compared to the international medium. - Come back for more next week.