Job Growth?

August already? Yep! The months just keep rolling along.

The economy is in the news. Job formation is a heady topic. We are doing well in creating new jobs. Much of this is a partial return to ‘normal’ as we struggle to get over the pandemic. But fresh layoffs and job losses are heralded in the same editions of the newspaper. Next item are reports of a labor shortage.

Well, all these reports can’t be true, right? Well, yes they can be.

Our economy is large and complex. Many elements are codependent on one another. Some are totally standalone in a bewildering array of statistics and economic hypothesizing. Perhaps this will help:

1.       The pandemic caused massive layoffs in the early months. Many of those workers returned to work by working from home.

2.       New employment opportunities grew as employers pivoted to different modes of operation to stay in business. Work from home became a thing, it remains such, and although employers say they want to get back to the office, that is not likely for everyone. Work from home is just too productive, valuable and appreciated by the workers themselves. It will not disappear on its own. I think it is here to stay.

3.       In mid-pandemic, older business models recognized they were out of date and needed to modernize. Some industries downsized permanently. New ones sprang into being. New jobs, new technologies, new products and services emerged from this brew of creativity. Yet, potential employees were few due to unmatched skillsets. That situation is slowly changing but only if people seek the skillset training.

4.       Retail commerce is changed. Grocery, medical and service retail businesses remain mostly in-person. But department stores? Not so much. People shop online. Goods are delivered at your door by the post office or UPS or FedEx.

5.       A revolution in commerce, industry and retail is taking place, has taken place, will always be in a state of flux. So, each of us has much to do to accommodate the changes.

6.       Does this mean we are in a recession, going into one, or coming out of one? The answer is yes, yes and yes. I said this was complex. And it is. Statistics reporting all of this chaos is available. But we have to ask the right question. “In what sector of the economy is employment growing, stagnant or declining?”

I’ll stop there. There is much more to report but you get the gist. If you want to work, you can. You may weather lower income, or higher, depending on the skillsets you have to offer. And if those skillsets are lacking, find what’s in and get the training. You will find a job at the end of that rainbow.

August 1, 2022

 

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