I get the feeling most of the newer jobs that are going to be created are going to be in the blue collar fields and the US isn't geared for providing those. I'm also not sure that people who have been conditioned to work white collar jobs will be happy to work in blue collar jobs.
U.S. unemployment rose in November despite job gains
41–50 of 103 posts
Re: U.S. unemployment rose in November despite job gains
#42Earlier quoted context omitted.
That’s just one facet. It’s not just the gig economy is “full”, all economies are “full”. There are not enough jobs for the employable people.
I saw a statistic that roughly 10% of the US workforce is in some form of "customer-facing service" role and I just have to wonder how many of those jobs are nearly gone, or already gone. Even if it's a 5% reduction, or 3% over the next decade, that seems catastrophic without a completely new category of jobs to replace them. I haven't talked to a cashier at a grocery store in years. It's all self-checkout. I stayed…
It varies a lot in my local experience from no self-checkout, to a mix, to mostly self-checkout with one or two backed-up lanes of cashiers. Whether it's good or bad for me personally depends on the type of merchandise and how much I have.
In general, I essentially always interact with a front desk at a hotel and it varies at a grocery store depending on lines and the merchandise I have.
Re: U.S. unemployment rose in November despite job gains
#43Earlier quoted context omitted.
As usual, size matters. Equating typical 401(k)s with the economic activity of the class GP is referring to is... absurd. But pretending small-time participation in public markets is the same as billionaire participation in private markets is a great way to convince the lower classes our financial system isn't structured to move wealth away from them.
Would you rather not even have the 401(k)? That’s the situation most of the world is in.
Of course not. But it's always worth considering: are those the only options?
Re: U.S. unemployment rose in November despite job gains
#44The gig economy is hiding the real employment problem in most of the West. How money Works "The Gig Economy is Full" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqmJN5z6Rjc (10 Dec 25)
That’s just one facet. It’s not just the gig economy is “full”, all economies are “full”. There are not enough jobs for the employable people.
There would be if we were investing in our infrastructure the way we should be, rather than allowing an aging population to hoard their wealth and shirk their responsibilities.
Re: U.S. unemployment rose in November despite job gains
#45Earlier quoted context omitted.
I saw a statistic that roughly 10% of the US workforce is in some form of "customer-facing service" role and I just have to wonder how many of those jobs are nearly gone, or already gone. Even if it's a 5% reduction, or 3% over the next decade, that seems catastrophic without a completely new category of jobs to replace them. I haven't talked to a cashier at a grocery store in years. It's all self-checkout. I stayed…
So you've never had a cart FULL of groceries? Or are you one of those people that do 30 items at self checkout?
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Re: U.S. unemployment rose in November despite job gains
#46Most job listings are fake - keep the investors, competitors and other employees think you are hiring. And who knows, maybe the right resume will actually be worth a look.
Re: U.S. unemployment rose in November despite job gains
#47Earlier quoted context omitted.
I go to a cashier lane whenever possible because shakes fist at cloud no one's paying me to ring up and bag my groceries. Also, unless job automation is tied to some kind of UBI or Freedom Dividend or whatever, we're facing a dystopian future with a starving underclass. Automation is supposed to free us from drudgery and open up more fulfilling work and leisure, not siphon wealth to the capital class. What jobs are p…
> Automation is supposed to free us from drudgery and open up more fulfilling work and leisure, not siphon wealth to the capital class. What jobs are people supposed to move to? The most successful model in history is the "capital class" creating new middle class jobs by venturing their capital.
That’s literally the opposite of what happened historically.
Read up on the history of textiles for example and cottage industry created and then was supplanted by a capital class. Economies of scale require all sorts of things to get going like efficient transportation, but after a tipping point wealth centralizes not the reverse. Slowly clothing goes from something like 1/3 of all labor to a small fraction of our current economy.
Re: U.S. unemployment rose in November despite job gains
#48I get the feeling most of the newer jobs that are going to be created are going to be in the blue collar fields and the US isn't geared for providing those. I'm also not sure that people who have been conditioned to work white collar jobs will be happy to work in blue collar jobs.
I think it has a potential to raise a lot of the salaries of blue-collar positions in middle America, and then create demand for the trades over the next decade or so.
I find it unlikely that white collar positions will be switching drastically to blue collar unless they’re already on the fence about it or they’re not middle to high up in the white collar ladder (six figures+)
Re: U.S. unemployment rose in November despite job gains
#49Earlier quoted context omitted.
Those who are still employed by my local grocery store don't seem too motivated to do their jobs. It's an unfortunate but foreseeable scenario that expedites the problem where people prefer self-checkout. I wish we'd pump the brakes on efficiency and profit.
They're pretty good near me And of course, there's this idea everything needs to be done like the house is on fire, but I'm usually fairly happy if I see someone getting a break to look at their phone and doesn't notice immediately that I'm standing waiting or whatever. Or ambles over at a leisurely pace, that's fine, take your time, it's hard running around all day
> take your time, it's hard running around all day
This. I've asked grocery checkers why they sprint through scanning my things, then relax as I bag them, and learned that they're subject to some dumb system that grades them on how fast they scan. Ask them if they're on the boss's clock, and if not, take a minute to chat and give them a break.
Re: U.S. unemployment rose in November despite job gains
#50Earlier quoted context omitted.
> Automation is supposed to free us from drudgery and open up more fulfilling work and leisure, not siphon wealth to the capital class. What jobs are people supposed to move to? The most successful model in history is the "capital class" creating new middle class jobs by venturing their capital.
That’s literally the opposite of what happened historically. Read up on the history of textiles for example and cottage industry created and then was supplanted by a capital class. Economies of scale require all sorts of things to get going like efficient transportation, but after a tipping point wealth centralizes not the reverse. Slowly clothing goes from something like 1/3 of all labor to a small fraction of our c…
Ah yes, historically. I've heard of "history".