It’s funny how easy it is to be a one-sided economist. If you espouse the view of one side of a situation, you are likely to find a supporter — and perhaps an employer — who will endow you with the resources needed to expand and market your one-sided viewpoint.
This is how we got to where we are.
I completely understand the feeling people have to desire agreement. It’s perfectly natural to want to be proven right. I, too, enjoy the pleasure associated with proving my point. This is likely why I write about such things as this. So here’s my shot at being right for the week.
Recently a local merchant posted a scathing indictment of every person under the age of 30 proclaiming, “no one wants to work anymore,” adding some expletives — I seem to recall the use of millennials in a pejorative context, as well.
So I decided to look one level further into his complaint.
Here are the details of the situation:
- He owns a lesser known fast food restaurant off the main exit to Mt. Juliet, Tennessee. It’s a very, very populous and popular area with major retailers, a cinema complex, and grocery.
- There are also at least 34 places to eat off this exit. I didn’t count the nice, sit-down restaurants, just fast food, fast-casual, etc.
- The area is famously Republican and voted for Trump twice where he won the precincts by double digits. This matters because he clearly thinks not working at “his” restaurant is a left-wing problem.
- He has plenty of available parking and is in an easily accessible spot with high visibility.
- The chain is not McDonald’s-famous but has a recognizable name and the sign is easy to spot.
- Ratings for his restaurant before the pandemic were about 3.8/5 on Restaurant Guru and 3.9 on Google — respectable, but not stellar.
- The nearest other outlet of the same franchise has ratings in the high 4s.
All other things being equal, he has the makings of a good little business.
Here’s my hypothesis: he’s an entitled asshole.
He thinks that since he invested his money in a franchise, went to cheap deli school and paid his fees, he is entitled to an affordable workforce who will “work like he did” as a kid.
This opinion is rampant in US businesses.
When I went to work at Disney in 1991, every employee from street sweeper at Disneyland to the executive suite could expect a fully funded retirement as both benefit and reward for their loyalty. Today you can expect to be vilified, yelled at by an untrained “manager” and fired if you’re late because the buses only run twice a day in your neighborhood. Basically we’ve lost the thread of what free markets actually represent.
In an actual “free” market, the employer has NO ENTITLEMENT to workers at his offered price. That’s not the way free markets operate. He has to bid up the number until the offer is accepted — just like he will likely raise his prices to the point the customer goes elsewhere. These are two equal parts of the employment market equation. In actual free markets neither side of the transaction has an upper hand, except as dictated by supply and demand.
So, two things stand out in this topline analysis. One, the market is seeking balance right now (that may make employers mad, but it’s their system so they should probably stop complaining), and two, the market may not need 40 damn fast-food joints at every exit.
The market has spoken so listen up!