There has been much handwringing lately about the state of the job market. Many small businesses cannot seem to hire enough workers, even when resorting to offer higher wages and signing bonuses. This is after the pandemic benefits have mostly stopped across the country. What is happening?
Paul Krugman in the NYT applauds workers for avoiding the poorly paying, high stress jobs like those on offer from fulfillment warehouses like those run by Amazon. Unlike the supply chain woes that should be cleared up as the pandemic wanes, worker dissatisfaction with low paying, no future jobs will be with us for the long term according to Krugman. He is not sure why this reluctance to step back into the low wage, menial work rat race is so pronounced. Perhaps it has to do with the pandemic sharpening the difference between the 1% and the rest of us. It may not be an unalloyed blessing, but the unorganized revolt of those who do the dirty jobs for low wages and an uncertain future is a step in the right direction.
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