too many people not enough jobs, but why?

LCpl Mark Lefler — Thu, 09 Jul 2015 15:00:26 -0400

I was thinking about it, its probably a silly theory but I'll throw it out there anyway... so we do have a jobs problem regardless if unemployment is 5% or 25%. The thing that comes to my mind is that maybe our population is simply outstripping the number of jobs in terms of we just can't make enough jobs for the sheer volume of people who are working age. I know there are other reason economy etc... but I wanted to through that idea out there.

Response by SFC Michael Hasbun made Jul 9 at 2015 3:01 PM

SFC Michael Hasbun — Thu, 09 Jul 2015 15:01:45 -0400

We are breeding faster than our economy can sustain. There are only so many jobs with an actual need. If you breed more people than there are jobs, than you'll have unemployment... That simple...

Response by SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL made Jul 9 at 2015 3:02 PM

SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL — Thu, 09 Jul 2015 15:02:44 -0400

I think it's supply and demand for your respective community. Right place/time and situation alphas a lot to do with it.

Response by SSgt Donnavon Smith made Jul 9 at 2015 3:09 PM

SSgt Donnavon Smith — Thu, 09 Jul 2015 15:09:24 -0400

Technology is the leading factor for this, what once took 5 people can now be done by one. There are enough jobs, but not enough people trained to do them. There has been a shift. we have 25% of our staff insourced from other countries because we cannot find people locally. Retrain into a medical or High Tech career field and there will be jobs for you!

Response by LTC Paul Labrador made Jul 9 at 2015 3:10 PM

LTC Paul Labrador — Thu, 09 Jul 2015 15:10:30 -0400

I think that is part of it. As you transition from an Industrial to Information economies, many jobs that required a lot of manpower will be taken over by automation.

Response by Sgt Aaron Kennedy, MS made Jul 9 at 2015 3:11 PM

Sgt Aaron Kennedy, MS — Thu, 09 Jul 2015 15:11:17 -0400

Well, you have to look at a few factors. You have Unemployed (those not employed but actively looking). Underemployed (those employed, but in positions "ill-suited" for their skill sets), and those who aren't employed & NOT looking.

One of the major problems we have is that most new jobs are being created at "service level" which exacerbates the Underemployed issue (and feeds the Unemployed issue, as people don't want to settle).

At any given time we have X populace. For X populace, we need Y work force. It's a "simple" mathematical equation (and by simple, I mean complex). Some of those are going to be military, some are bureaucrat, some are health care, some are service, etc. It's much like the military when talking about Combat Arms, Combat Support, Combat Service Support, and the ratios we have there. We need a certain ratio of "non-working" populace. We also need an economy capable of supporting that ratio. That's the rub.

Right now, we're out of skew, in that our expectations of non-workers is too low, and our income is also too low, likely due to things like debt:income, and spending:income.

Response by Cpl Jeff N. made Jul 9 at 2015 3:19 PM

Cpl Jeff N. — Thu, 09 Jul 2015 15:19:54 -0400

The economy is not a zero sum game. It is almost always growing. There are a few issues relative to employment we continue to face. First, we are still in a very weak recovery. Second, we have exported and continue to export jobs to foreign countries and third, we have a lot of folks crossing our borders looking for work. You can argue they are taking jobs Americans will not do but that is not universally true.

A growing population means more demand for services and goods which creates economic growth. If a lot of the goods we buy are made elsewhere then we don't get the jobs lift we should expect from more demand for goods. We all heer about "service sector" jobs being the ones we tend to create. That is because it is harder to move service jobs off shore. Not impossible since think like accounting, customer service call centers etc can be moved.

Another dynamic is baby boomers not retiring as fast or early perhaps as we would like to open slots for younger workers.

Response by MSG Brad Sand made Jul 9 at 2015 3:25 PM

MSG Brad Sand — Thu, 09 Jul 2015 15:25:57 -0400

I think if you look closely, there are plenty of jobs BUT people are not wanting to do them. They are hard and dirty...like most military jobs...and they don't start out at $250,000 a year?

Response by COL Jean (John) F. B. made Jul 9 at 2015 3:35 PM

COL Jean (John) F. B. — Thu, 09 Jul 2015 15:35:52 -0400

LCpl Mark Lefler - I think there are plenty of jobs for people who want them. The issue is that folks' expectations are higher than reality (won't work certain jobs or for the pay offered) and, of course, the other issue is the expansion of the entitlement mentality in this country. Why work when they can get paid for doing nothing? In addition, technology advances have drastically reduced the number of personnel required to do certain tasks/jobs.

Response by SPC Jan Allbright, M.Sc., R.S. made Jul 9 at 2015 4:03 PM

SPC Jan Allbright, M.Sc., R.S. — Thu, 09 Jul 2015 16:03:14 -0400

Post WW2 the United States was the ONLY industrialized nation with any capacity at all. The rest of the world was pretty much 3rd world or trashed. Then all the GIs went into schools or good paying union jobs while the U.S. Government loaned piles in the way of the Marshal Plan to help rebuild the world. And the GIs had 2.54 children per family and the U.S. Population swelled. And the population of the U.S. was full flush as the only producing country. Then the rest of the world dug itself out of the war rubble and started to compete again .. and then U.S. Corporate leaders figured out that the only thing the 3rd world needed was industrial capacity to take advantage of the $0.30 / hr wage.
The Post WW2 / Baby boom economic growth was an aberration in the history of economics. Not to be repeated until we get another "scorched earth" event.

Response by SSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Jul 9 at 2015 4:17 PM

SSgt Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 09 Jul 2015 16:17:06 -0400

Hi, Lance Corporal Lefler.
There are a number of factors.
1. We’ve moved from an agrarian (farming) society, through a manufacturing economy, to a knowledge-based economy. Knowledge is now recognized as the driver of productivity and economic growth, leading to a new focus on the role of information, technology and learning in economic performance.

2. The fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and the collapse of communism added half of the planet to the workforce.

3. With all of the fiber optic cable now stretched across the ocean, it’s just as easy to move data from the other side of the planet as it is to move it across the street.

4. The Y2K bug gave us a reason to outsource a lot of technological expertise to these new country workforces and economies. The code to fix the Y2K conundrum was outdated, and the people that knew it were either retired or very expensive. We moved it to countries still using it, and they provided support cheaply. Our manufacturing ability came next. Our status as a manufacturing powerhouse, set after World War II, has fallen to a world stage. What drove the baby boomer generation after the war isn’t sustainable anymore.

Response by 1LT Private RallyPoint Member made Jul 9 at 2015 4:17 PM

1LT Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 09 Jul 2015 16:17:27 -0400

In my opinion, automation has had a lot to do with losing jobs. A number of industries come to mind that used to employ a lot more people - agriculture and manufacturing to name just a couple.

The market is becoming more skill and knowledge based, requiring more education and technical knowledge. Unfortunately not everyone has access to that education or don't have the money to send themselves or their children through post-secondary schools.

There seem to be plenty of jobs available IF you are qualified to work them. Getting that qualification without going broke is the problem for the average Joe in the U.S. right now. If you have engineering, medical or computer skills you are pretty much guaranteed to find a job no matter where you look.

Response by SFC Bryan Clark made Jul 9 at 2015 6:50 PM

SFC Bryan Clark — Thu, 09 Jul 2015 18:50:45 -0400

technology!!!!

Response by SGT Richard H. made Jul 9 at 2015 8:17 PM

SGT Richard H. — Thu, 09 Jul 2015 20:17:15 -0400

Just my off-the-cuff opinion, but I think it's more an ambition issue than anything. I would increase my workforce by 30% TOMORROW if a few qualified guys and several who just want to learn darkened my doorway.

Response by Maj John Bell made May 16 at 2016 3:07 PM

Maj John Bell — Mon, 16 May 2016 15:07:06 -0400

Flawed analogy alert -- My tribe survives on fish. We stand on the rocks and swing sticks at them. If we are lucky, we eat today. Someone discovers the gill net. Great News, we catch more than enough food to eat. Bad News, we have 25% unemployment. Someone discovers domestication of livestock. Great news, we have variety in our diet and we are healthier, and 25% of us are employed as herders. Bad news birth rates go up, age at death goes up. We have 25% employment again. Great news, someone discovers mud bricks. Our quality of life goes up, less death from hypothermia in winter. Bad news birth rates go up, age at death goes up. We have 25% employment again. Good news... Bad News... Good News... Bad News... Excess capacity will eventually find opportunity, if people are allowed to reap the benefits of innovation, entrepeneurship, and hard work. Even those who do not innovate or build their own business, as long as they prepare them selves for the opportunity.

For some who are too old, too infirm, untrainable, overwhelmed by their situation, or what ever; they become casualties in the good news - bad news cycle. That's when someone invents (Good News) Charitable Non-governmental Organizations (NGO's)or (Bad News) tribal leadership steps in and makes decisions about who is and who is not worthy of charity. Under tribal leadership, Oligarchy, Nepotism , Corruption, and Fraud ravage the excess production that should go to support the truly needy and incapable. That happens under NGO's but it is decentralized, less rampant, more obvious when something is wrong.

Response by MSG John Duchesneau made Jul 22 at 2019 10:32 PM

MSG John Duchesneau — Mon, 22 Jul 2019 22:32:41 -0400

Its more complex than that. The primary problem is that there is no coordination between the education system and the economy. The result is that schools are not producing the people with the job skills the economy needs and the result is you have college grads doing jobs which only require a high school education and a lot of good jobs which can't get people to fill them.
If you can, get a skilled trade like a carpenter, electrician, plumber, machinist etc. Most tradesmen make more money than most lawyers. Yes, there are lawyers who make $150K plus but they are only about 10 percent of the lawyers.