Complaining that “nobody wants to work anymore” seems to be a popular trend these days. The complaint seems to come most frequently from those collecting pensions that are rarely offered these days or from those looking for workers, with the occasional self-important person joining in from atop a high horse. But is it really that cut and dry? Did people all of a sudden decide they don’t want to work? Or did the working class realize that well-paying, quality jobs were no longer being offered to them?
Home Depot lists 20-plus job openings on its in-store display boards, all of them part-time. Can a company that boasts “net earnings for fiscal 2021 [of] $16.4 billion” really expect people to apply for jobs that don’t offer full-time hours or benefits? Do restaurants in Durango expect prospective employees to get excited about earning $9.54 per hour plus tips? Do construction companies expect skilled tradespeople to accept that they’ll be classified as independent contractors, while being treated as employees but with none of the benefits?
Next time you feel the urge to posit that “nobody wants to work anymore” to no one in particular, ask yourself whether the supposed job creators in Durango are actually creating jobs or if they are just creating work.
Jeff Dunn
Durango
