I am perplexed as to why retail companies are raising their wages. I understand where the author is coming from to say that they are losing their current working force and want to reduce turnover. However, these low level jobs in years were flooded with people whose education level was above what their job required. If businesses are starting to hire then naturally those with a degree in a specific field will leave a job that doesn't pertain to their field of choice and go to where they have a comparative advantage.
In my mind, retail jobs should be relegated to high school students and those who are marginalized in society (the article listed who fall into that category well). If this is true, instead of raising wages it would make more sense to begin to market their to the proper demographic who do not care if they have benefits (in the short term). Ski resorts do a great job of this as they advertise at high schools for their job fairs as they offer a free season pass, low pay, and no foreseeable future with the company. Teenagers see the free season pass and sign up immediately, I know I did.
What I see this as a good sign for is those with a ba or bs can begin to obtain jobs without relevant work experience. Over the past few years minimum experience has been around 5 years for a decent job. Many new graduates won't have 5 years experience. How could they? They've worked at the ski resort every winter for the past 4 winters of their high school career.
One thing caught my eye is that the article stated inflation is around two percent - yet, our loan rates are rock bottom. How can this be? I thought they had an inverse relationship to one another.
-swe you guys Wednesday! Mmmm Thai food
-Brian
What jobs are you taking that consider five years experience to be only a minimum? Apprenticeships for some trade unions don't take that long, and your apprenticeship is supposed to teach you just about everything you need to know for your job. Also, relegating an entire sector of the economy to only certain groups of people seems discriminatory at best. You're ignoring the potential for qualified professionals to maybe take a break, or are caught in-between jobs and simply need something to fill their time and keep some level of income flowing. Or people who supplement a stay-at-home business with additional income from a regular job-type job. The end point of this is that you don't need to make retail, (or fast food for that matter) into a job that only high school students and those people who, in your words, are 'marginalized by society' would want or accept. If you institute a work culture that caters towards professionalism and opportunity for growth, retail becomes less of an industry sector that we're shocked is raising its wages, and more of an industry that everyone can look at as a potential source of employment, rather than simply being the last stop before the food line.
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