The General Chat Thread (2016-2022)

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Wow.. there's an immense shortage in workers here.

So I applied to work at the bakery of my local supermarket as a side gig of 8 hours a week. And for the first time in 10 years, they want me to come for an interview!

I'm stunned and exited. Maybe I can work a little after all!
Congrats! It's like that here. I've never seen so many help wanted signs in my life, and it's not just the service industry.
 
Congrats! It's like that here. I've never seen so many help wanted signs in my life, and it's not just the service industry.
Yeah, it's moving to desperation from employers now. A year ago nobody would even respond to my CV. And it's been like that for 10 years. Now I am suddenly invited. I still can't believe it. Does mean I am going to try more if she might reject me, but she didn't sound like she will. She was already asking me when I was available for planning, so it sounds good.
 
Yeah, it's moving to desperation from employers now. A year ago nobody would even respond to my CV. And it's been like that for 10 years. Now I am suddenly invited. I still can't believe it. Does mean I am going to try more if she might reject me, but she didn't sound like she will. She was already asking me when I was available for planning, so it sounds good.

Great news and being in the bakery section will suit you. Why the shortage of labour? I'm not sure there is that here for supermarket work.
 
Great news and being in the bakery section will suit you. Why the shortage of labour? I'm not sure there is that here for supermarket work.
It's because almost nobody is trained in manual labor here anymore, and specifically bakers are in high demand. We've got 'diploma inflation' as they call it , which means that just about everyone is highly educated and skilled/manual labor is out of fashion. Which in recent years pushed all the manual laborers into unemployment. But now so many baby boomers are leaving the workforce, suddenly all the manual labor spots that were left are unfulfilled. So with my restaurant experience, I am suddenly needed now.
I don't know much else about it, the article below might explain some more.

Dutch employment crisis: More job vacancies than unemployed
 
Great news and being in the bakery section will suit you. Why the shortage of labour? I'm not sure there is that here for supermarket work.

It is simple in the US, people, most often in the lower paying jobs, but also in higher paying service jobs, are working harder than before covid to save their employers overhead, but not getting paid more money. So they are quitting to find better paying jobs.

Waitstaff in restaurants are the prime example. To save money during lean times, restaurants in much of the US are using fewer servers to wait on the same number of tables, and expecting the servers to bus their own tables, in many cases. But, they are not getting paid any additional wages. Plus, with tips (which is most of a server's income) down, they are burning out.

In some higher paid, professional jobs, the same thing is happening. My sister is a Registered Nurse in a hospital (that happens to have a lot of covid patients, too), and she is working much harder now, and her pay hasn't gone up commensurately. A Registered Nurse is a job that requires a college degree, and a license requiring yearly continuing education and testing, so it is not menial labor. My sister is constantly on the edge of burnout, and hasn't had a decent raise since the pandemic started.

On the other hand, there are some professions/career paths (and age groups) where people can't get a job in their profession/career path. They, including me, are going to eventually settle for a lower paying job in another field. It's a weird economy since covid came along.

CD
 
I flew down to Houston on Wednesday, October 29, and it was wrm and humid when I left Dallas. I flew back a week later, and arrive in Dallas in the afternoon to 48F/9C. It is going down to 38F/3C tonight.

A big cold front can through while I was gone.

CD
 
I'm hearing a lot of truck drivers are retiring here so big gaps in the class 5 jobs. Truck and trailer. I'm class 2 and 4. Not that I'm looking atm.
The uk too are running low on drivers.
Aging population I guess.

Russ
 
I'm hearing a lot of truck drivers are retiring here so big gaps in the class 5 jobs. Truck and trailer. I'm class 2 and 4. Not that I'm looking atm.
The uk too are running low on drivers.
Aging population I guess.

Russ

Truck drivers are in short supply here, too. The whole supply chain from ships to trucks is hurting. A lot of truck drivers are retiring, plus fuel prices are going up a lot, so some independent owner/operators are parking their trucks and taking other jobs for now.

On the other hand, rising oil prices with be good for the Texas economy. Oilfield work had dried up when oil prices were too low to make drilling profitable. Higher prices will creat more oilfield work -- even if it is just restarting wells that were shut down.

CD
 
Truck drivers are in short supply here, too. The whole supply chain from ships to trucks is hurting. A lot of truck drivers are retiring, plus fuel prices are going up a lot, so some independent owner/operators are parking their trucks and taking other jobs for now.

On the other hand, rising oil prices with be good for the Texas economy. Oilfield work had dried up when oil prices were too low to make drilling profitable. Higher prices will creat more oilfield work -- even if it is just restarting wells that were shut down.

CD

The truck shortage I know about as I have friends in Texas as well. Owner drivers not being allowed on wharves because of unions.
I watch cnn so I'm not out of touch with things around the world.

Russ
 
The truck shortage I know about as I have friends in Texas as well. Owner drivers not being allowed on wharves because of unions.
I watch cnn so I'm not out of touch with things around the world.

Russ

The owner/operator vs Unions is news to me. At the big ports, I believe the containers off the ships at the actual docks are those short wheelbase (highly-maneuverable) trucks own by the port. They are taken to another location to be loaded onto over-the-road trucks.

CD
 
The owner/operator vs Unions is news to me. At the big ports, I believe the containers off the ships at the actual docks are those short wheelbase (highly-maneuverable) trucks own by the port. They are taken to another location to be loaded onto over-the-road trucks.

CD

Maybe you guys should copy the ozzie with their road trains. ??
We have a program here called outback truckers. I've been known to watch occasionally. Lol

Russ
 
On the plus side, the clock in my car will be correct for a few months. :rolleyes:
Coming out of hospital we've run into a problem with my husband's SUV which leaves It needing 4 new tyres and a new shock absorber/Spring (he decided to leave to wheel wobble that developed after getting the vehicle cleaned, assuming it had just lost a weight from a wheel....) the result being the vibrations actually hurt my new hip (operation site).... so I've been refusing to use his vehicle...

Last Tuesday when he had to drive me to physio, we went in my 4×4... but the battery was flat. He'd left the lights on last time he'd used it and depending on if a wire on the lights circuit is loose or not controls if the lights turn off automatically with the ignition. He never, ever checks... never has done and its been an ongoing issue the entire time I've known him (since 1991)... And so to my 4x4's clocks. They both needed resetting on Tuesday once I had the engine running yet again... Now the vehicle clock is a doddle to set. 3 buttons (H, m, s) press once and hold... So the vehicle clock is sorted but the radio's clock. Swear words galore. I can't even get the darned thing to turn off let alone reset the clock and now I need to reprogram it to connect to my phone again and auto answer... Grr... Actually, that's just given me an idea for a Christmas present, lol!
 
I just saw the sad news. At the start of a Travis Scott concert in Houston last night, the crowd surged toward the stage. 8 dead, 17 in the hospital (11 taken in for cardiac arrest), over 300 treated at the scene. I brings back memories of the The Who concert in 1979 where 11 died.

CD :cry:
 
I just saw the sad news. At the start of a Travis Scott concert in Houston last night, the crowd surged toward the stage. 8 dead, 17 in the hospital (11 taken in for cardiac arrest), over 300 treated at the scene. I brings back memories of the The Who concert in 1979 where 11 died.

CD :cry:
It made the news as well here. Crazy and bizarre.
R.i.p

Russ
 
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