09/25/2024
The Employee vs Employer Dynamic that NEEDS to CHANGE
When I Started Your Farm Gate back in 2016 we launched doing markets on the weekends and construction landscaping during the week. A secure position and hours to keep my head above water, a predictable end time and known weekends off. This allowed me the ample ability to grow myself, my business and life.
Currently the majority of jobs that I witness within the Region are not only not enough financially to have a low lifestyle experience, but they are also highly inconsistent. It was one thing to work 4 on 4 off kind of situation as my father did at his time at GM Plant 2 where you were making more than enough to just have that job. As miserable as those disruptions in circadian rhythm make a person.
As all of us know today this is no longer the case through many mismanagements of finance, economic development and of particular industries during COVID that just one source of income is enough in these times. The stories of NFL running backs talking about mom having 3 jobs is now far more common and it isn’t because it is a single parent home. The fact that the majority of those employed cannot cover rent in Niagara on 40 hours a week is pathetic.
If we are to look at the worst that be happening to employees in this depressive economic market, inconsistent schedules could be the worst. Factor in external costs of travel (gas, maintenance, depreciation, time) the idea of no consistent schedule and short hours means many are short of what they need to survive. You cannot plan around a roaming schedule with the idea of making it fair. Fair is allowing people to have a life, to make more money if they require and to work together.
If one of the glaring issues for employers is no one wants to work or show up, it may be critical to look at the scheduling and overall operations of the business. The idea of just blindly paying more will not benefit when the only response is to also raise prices causing further inflation. People need to have the ability to work and to live. This would be best solved by giving your staff consistent schedules and aligning teams. This worked great for decades with culinary businesses, like a National Basketball team that plays together more gets better. You become more efficient in ex*****on and communication as the team becomes better aligned. If you keep breaking up the organization of the team, giving no purpose or direction, you create chaos. You create anger.
So now we have a job market where no one can respectfully take a job to pay the bills. It just isn’t enough. Give employees and employers a fighting chance we need more consistency in our lives. It may be the only way to get through the dropped bag that is the Canadian Economy, strapped with chains and cement blocks thrown overboard to watch sink to the depths of the waters it finds itself.
