Jobs in Realville

 

 

"The days of having a job for life with a great retirement package have gone the way of the Dodo Bird..."

Even though retired, I still read the business section of the paper. Only today, I read it for different reasons. Not only do I read the business section, I also scour the internet for articles which tell the REAL story of today's economy. They are out there, and the picture they paint is not pretty for many of the working folks today.

We have been hearing quite a bit from the front page of the newspaper about the travesty of the minimum wage. It is too low. One can't raise a family on $7.25/hour. It needs to be raised to $10.10/hour to give people a livable wage. This story is a canard. Nobody in this country, not even living in Appalachia, can support a family of four making $20k/year (That is $10.10/hour). If you want to use the term "livable wage" to support the family of four, then say $40k/year. In today's economy, making $40k/year would be a stretch, but possible.

However, while the press is focusing on this non-story of minimum wage, there is a much bigger story happening. I say minimum wage is a non-story for one reason only - it was NEVER intended to be a living wage salary. It was entry level for unskilled people. A place to start, not stay. If one's working skills are only suited for entry level wages, then we have a much bigger problem in our country.

The people who have gone to school, learned a trade, have a different problem. More and more companies are not offering employee retirement. That benefit is quickly becoming extinct. I talked to a friend of mine the other day. He told me his company informed the employees at the end of last year the retirement benefit was changing in 2014. Rather than getting a "normal retirement" using the "high five" formula, everyone will be getting $1,000 for every year worked. My friend is 50. If he works until 65, he will walk out of there with a check for $15k. Figure how long that will last.

Also this week, more layoffs were announced from Best Buy and IBM. Good paying jobs with some benefits now gone. These people will be looking for employment in a land riddled with part time, seasonal, contracted work, much of which has a lower pay scale and no benefits. This is becoming our new norm. The new realville. If you have a good job with good benefits, get down on your benders every night and thank the Good Lord. What was expected, is now becoming rare.

A good country becomes great by raising the tide for all boats. A great country becomes ordinary by draining the pond so only a few boats are left floating. We are starting to sink folks. It is happening. We need the adults back in charge - and quickly.