Let me just say as Crown employee that where as I did not like the pay cut it is one that I will take ( like I had a choice ) Crown is a good employer making what I think is a superior product. They are doing what they feel like they have to survive. They are very slow to lay off, How many other company's can say that ?
Thanks for the reply, I really didn't have any disagreement about your points, but since you enumerated your points, let me respond by the number;
1. "rich" is very relative, and in relation to the income of the line employees, I think the owners of any lift truck company factory qualify as already "rich" (especially in relation to me, and not neccessarly just holders of some stock). I am willing to bet they are still not making a choice between eating lunch at a fast food place or buying the generic medicine their kid needs, and I sure do know some forklift techs that have had to make that choice this week. Having a flock of kids can be expensive.
I really have noticed that -everyone- is having less than what they were having about 2 years ago.
2.) so a sharp stick in the eye is better than a broken leg.
I do know that some job is better than NO job, but if you are already -only- earning "a fair days wage for a fair days work" 320 a week to stay home and watch TV, after all the expenses (tools, shoes, commute fuel + car insurance, health insurance, meals away from home, etc..) the bigger problem is that not only does that "run out", but since that amount is tied to how much your wage was when you got "made redundant", once you start working for a smaller wage, the amount unemployment pays amount goes down with it. it is a "no win, but you HAVE to play"
3.) I have found myself suddenly without a job, and I am all for making lemonade when life hands you lemons, but not everyone is as fortunate as we have been. I can not take the credit for the good jobs I have been given ["there but by the grace of God go I'].
You say "How it was calculated then vs. today is a non issue.", well for -ME-, I wanted to bring it up, for -you- and _your_ points, it was a non issue. What seems obvious to you, with our long term historical view, may not seem as obvious to someone with out your/our "life experience".
All that said, I do hope everyone keeps needing more and more forklifts, and I do hope and expect the owners of the factories and their managers would be making more than most people, I think when they do it right, it really improves the lives of soooo many people, not just the people in the forklift industry, but everyone who uses something that was moved by a forklift is slightly better off for them "getting it right", and everything is moved by a forklift somewhere.
"It is not a good situation any way you look at it"
ahhh, come on, at least real estate prices are low? [just trying to find the silver lining]
I would hope there was work for everyone that wanted a good job, as I think we all would. I hope we figure out how to get everyone back to work.
Maybe the answer is a 32 hour work week? and mandatory overtime after 32 hours?
Edward T.
The points of my e-mail post was:
1. The owners of any lift truck company factory or dealer are not getting rich at the expense of employees. Sales are down, revenues are down, profit margins are down.
2.. Still having a job even at a lower pay is very much better than going to the unemployment office. $320 a week doesn't go too far. That is called a personal depression.
3. Should you find yourself without a job as I did in 1981, look at it as an opportunity to do something you always wanted to do rather than look at your shoeshine.
Further, I simply stated what the unemployment rate that was published in 1981 as compared to the percent printed today and alluded to the point it may get worse in 2009. How it was calculated then vs. today is a non issue. As I believe at the same time the formula for determining how the unemployment level was revised the percentage of what was considered full employment was also revised from 3.5% unemployed to 4.5%.
It is obvious that you will have more people out of work with a population growth even if the unemployment percentage remains the same. It is not a good situation any way you look at it. I have friends in the lift truck industry that have been caught up in today's situation. A company I worked for had about 250 employees at one time has about 100 today.
I for one hope Crown continues to make money. If they don't there will be more people added to the unemployment #'s. I certainly don't want to make light of having your wages reduced but the alternative could be much worse. So far at my branch there haven't been anyone laid off, I know that I would rather look around my office and know that the single mother of two still has a job with benefits. Most dealers in my area are letting people go. That means no income, no benefits, standing in line at the unemployment office or hoping your resume stands out among the hundreds of other resumes.
John, I think if you look really close, you might find we have (at some point since 1981) changed the way we (in the USA) calculate how many unemployed people there are, so, while it was reported as about 10% in 1981, many more people are unemployed today (partially due to more people on the planet and not counting anyone who has run out of benefits or found themselves unemployed but not eligible for benefits).
In these economic times no one is going to the bank with bags full of $$. As often said a little bit of something is a million times better than a whole lot of nothing. I know this well being unemployed a few times in my career. First time 12.16.1981 after 14 years - a bigger recession so far w/10% unemployment for sure. But it gave me the opportunitiy to escape -26F (wind chill -80 to 100F) January, 1982 temperatures in Chicago area.
Yep, I don't miss the snow either, either.