|
|
|
Education - Let the Learning Begin!
You've probably heard it since you were little, 'get a good education and you'll go far in life.' Maybe you used to wonder how truthful your relatives were when they said those words to you. Maybe now you know or wish you had listened to them a...
Matching Your Skills - To Your Job Search
Matching Your Skills to Find Appropriate Jobs
Skills refer to the things you do well. The key to finding the
most appropriate jobs in the industry is recognizing your own
skills and communicating the significance written and verbally
to a...
Power Networking: Getting Your Name Out There!
Today's economy presents some very special challenges to people
who are unemployed, underemployed, or who are simply trying to
give their own business venture a shot in the arm. At times, the
job search can seem daunting, if not impossible, as it...
The Job Loss Myth
Presidential candidate John Kerry is fond of stating that “... not since Herbert Hoover has any president lost more jobs than George W. Bush.” And there is a kernel of truth to the statement; thanks to technology, jobs require less human...
Vocational Training -- the Other School Meat
Many of us have been told that a college degree is necessary in order to land a satisfying career that has a good salary. However, while experts agree that most careers do require postsecondary training or education, statistics show that only a...
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Job Layoffs: Are We The Problem?
You know, we all talk a good game about keeping job positions
in America and stemming the tide of illegal immigrants who pour
through our borders at an alarming rate. But are we really
willing to change our lifestyle, to put our money where our
mouth is?
We love bargains so we buy the lowest priced goods from clothes,
to electronics, to household furnishings. We have tags on
everything we own: "Made in China," or "Assembled in Mexico." We
could insist on only purchasing items manufactured in the United
States but then we would have to pay more, a lot more.
For Americans to be willing to take the jobs that go to illegal
immigrants, pay rates would need to be substantially increased.
If a living, above-the-poverty-line, wage was paid for such work
as restaurant helper, motel maid, farmhand, day laborer,
swamper, furniture assembler, airplane ramp crew, custodian, and
fast food worker, all of our goods and services would cost more,
meaning that we'd have to give
up many of the things we take for
granted.
Companies have to maintain a robust bottom line to stay in
business. They adjust their prices according to the cost of the
goods produced. It may not be very philanthropic or humane, but
it is plain, basic economics.
When decent jobs are hard to come by, it is very tempting to
blame employers for sending their jobs overseas. It is much more
difficult to look at ourselves and admit that our own
consumption habits and needs are the driving force.
About the author:
Virginia Bola operated a rehabilitation company for 20 years,
developing innovative job search techniques for disabled
workers, while serving as a Vocational Expert in Administrative,
Civil and Workers' Compensation Courts. Author of an interactive
and supportive workbook, The Wolf at the Door: An Unemployment
Survival Manual, and a monthly ezine, The Worker's Edge, she can
be reached at http://www.unemploymentblues.com
|
|
|
|
|
|