To find workers, there’s a free-enterprise solution right at employers’ fingertips: raise pay, improve conditions, and show respect.
By Jim Hightower | June 9, 2021
This article first appeared in OtherWords.
Republished with Permission: The Roosevelt Island Daily News
At a recent congressional hearing on America’s so-called “labor shortage,” megabanker Jamie Dimon of JPMorgan Chase, offered this insight: “People actually have a lot of money, and they don’t particularly feel like going back to work.”
Dimon is a billionaire who may be unaware that most people are living paycheck to paycheck. Since COVID-19 hit, millions have lost their jobs, savings, and even homes. Relief measures have helped, but ordinary people are not exactly lollygagging around the house, counting their cash.
End the Subminimum Tipped Wage
Instead of listening to the uber-rich class ignorance of Dimon (who pocketed $35 million in pay last year), Congress ought to be listening to actual workers explain why they’re not rushing back to the jobs being offered by restaurant chains and such.
These workers would point out that there’s no labor shortage — there’s a wage shortage.
More fundamentally, there’s a fairness shortage.
It was not lost on restaurant workers, for example, that while millions of them were jobless last year, their corporate CEOs were grabbing millions, buying yachts, and living large. Yet more than half of laid-off restaurant workers couldn’t even get unemployment benefits because their wages had been too low to qualify.
Then there’s the high risk of COVID exposure for restaurant employees, an appalling level of sexual harassment in their workplace, and demeaning treatment from abusive bosses and customers.
No surprise, then, that more than half of employees said in a recent survey that they’re not going back to those jobs. After all, even a dog knows the difference between being stumbled over and being kicked.
So rather than demanding that government officials force workers to return to the old exploitative system, corporate giants should try the free-enterprise solution right at their fingertips: Raise pay, improve conditions, and show respect.
In short, create a place where people want to work! For a straightforward view from workers themselves, go to OneFairWage.site.
Also from Assorted Ideas, Large & Small
- How Roosevelt Island Reflects a City on the Move
Discover how Roosevelt Island reflects a city on the move, capturing the currents of New York through neighborhood routines, sports celebrations, and community moments. - Keeping Steady Through City Currents: How Roosevelt Island Residents Stay Connected
New York’s shifting news often impacts daily routines on the island. Discover how Roosevelt Island residents stay connected through city changes and local events. - Neighborhood Notes: Weekly Changes and Community Moments Across Roosevelt Island and Beyond
Neighborhood notes on weekly changes and community moments across Roosevelt Island and neighboring areas, including emergency response, community events, new developments, and local reflections. - Queens Neighborhood Developments Through a Roosevelt Island Lens
Discover recent Queens neighborhood developments through a Roosevelt Island perspective—including local safety, rezoning, community responses, and campaign updates. - How Community Connections Shape Daily Life Between Roosevelt Island and Queens
Discover how community connections shape daily life between Roosevelt Island and Queens, from public safety to local events, culture, business openings, and neighborhood milestones.
Lance A. Polivy, Vice President for Legal Affairs
I do not usually write ahead of the week’s rhythm. Fridays suit an old woman. They allow time for tea, rereading, and the small mercy of correcting one’s own excessive cleverness. But this cannot wait for Friday.
