The Changing Face Of Labor
Things are happening fast.
We wrote about this topic a number of times because it is so fascinating what is taking place. There has not been a shift in employment to this degree for the last 50 years. Since the Boomers entered the workforce throughout the developed world, the paradigm favored employers.
It looks like this is all changing.
We are not mired in a race with companies turning to technology while employees are starting to demand more rights.
This is all leading to a very confusing situation which will likely exist until we see which direction things are heading long-term.
One thing we know, the Boomers in all countries are at the point they are starting to exit the workforce in large numbers. This is going to have a major impact upon things.
Automation
It is no secret that many companies are complaining about their inability to find workers. This is a bit misleading. The entire premise of a "worker shortage" is being manipulated.
What is really taking place is the fact that companies refuse to increase wages to the point to eliminate the shortage. The reality is they cannot find workers for the price they are willing to pay.
Nevertheless, it is companies right to pay as they see fit. If they are not going to pay higher wages, then automation is going to have to be the answer. This is especially true in industries such as fast food, which always has a tough time getting workers, regardless of the labor environment.
McDonalds might have received the most recognition for their transformation to automated ordering. They are not, however, the only ones entering this realm.
Checkers and Rally's are not getting into the game. It is announced they will also add automated ordering to the drive-thrus in the corporate owned locations.
The restaurant company, known for its double drive-thru lanes, announced plans Monday to launch voice ordering bots at 267 corporate stores in partnership with Presto. Checkers is now the first national restaurant concept to scale the use of AI-powered voice assistants at the drive-thru, which will be rolled out throughout 2022.
At this point, it might be a matter of survival. These entities are facing the adapt or die moment. People simply are not willing to deal with that type of work anymore, especially for the wages offered. Even after increasing the wages some areas, the problem still persists. It just shows that perhaps there is more to it than just money.
How bad is the problem?
The move comes as the industry faces a massive labor shortage. In November, 920,000 employees quit working at restaurants and hotels, surpassing August's high of of 867,000 in the second half of 2021, according to Labor Department data.
The Great Resignation is upon us. Companies are quickly starting to realize that employees are not longer going to be happy accepting crap work for equally bad pay.
The lockdown period seemed to give individuals time to re-evaluate their priorities. Evidently slaving away for some thankless corporation is not high on the list anymore.
Work-Life Balance
Whatever is the motivator, there seems to be a shift towards a work-life balance. The fact people are leaving jobs shows they are not going to beholden to the companies in the way they once were.
This is forcing corporations to adjust. Some are taking the initiative to adapt in a way that might help them retain workers.
Japan is a place where great experimentation is taking place. This country is really up against it due to the fact they have a horrific demographic situation. It is something they battled for 25 years and it is not getting any better.
For this reason, one of the most recognized brands, Panasonic, just announced they are offering an optional 4-day workweek. This is a marked shift from the Japanese mentality of a few decades ago. There was a time when the Japanese believed in outworking the rest of the world. It is a stance that was recently adopted by China.
There are projects in different parts of the world that are experimenting with this concept. It is likely to keep spreading since it appears workers understand things are starting to tilt in their favor.
Panasonic’s move is in line with actions by technology companies worldwide that are trying to attract talent in a tight job market by offering a shorter week. Amazon.com Inc. piloted a four-day week for select employees in 2018, and consumer-goods giant Unilever PLC in December 2020 started a yearlong trial of the shortened week for its New Zealand staff. Countries such as Ireland and Iceland are also trying it out.
As we can see, the situation is multi-tiered. There is a lot of moving parts to this equation. We didn't even factor in the entire remote work movement. This is going to affect a lot o things such as real estate, property taxes, and where population centers are located.
The next couple years are going to see this process continue. Each side is trying to figure out what is going on. Nothing is for certain of than the fact that we are not likely going to see a return to how things were before March of 2020.
We are seeing a change in the face of labor. It is something that is going to take a while to resolve.
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