Where have all the jobs gone?
According to our president-elect they have apparently disappeared to China and other Asian countries. This may be true, but on my last visit to China all I saw were people driving Chrysler and Mercedes Benz cars. So they must be doing something right.
Speaking of cars, it wasn’t long ago that when you pulled into a gas station for a fill-up, the guy would rush out in his greasy jeans, fill your car with gas, clean the windshield and check the air in your tires. I did this for a short time myself.
All of these guys have been replaced by a person sitting behind a bullet-proof glass cage waiting to take your money or credit card. Have all these people gone to China?
As for our jobs, one of my early experiences was as an elevator operator for a huge Radio Shack facility in Boston. People marveled at how I was able to bring the elevator even with the floor at each level after a bit of juggling that big handle back and forth. For this I was well rewarded by a pay of 75 cents per hour. Evidently those jobs are no longer available and have been replaced by pushbuttons.
I used to enjoy driving up the turnpike and stopping every now and then at the tollbooth to pay my toll and or get directions to my next stop. Where are all these people now? Are they in China?
Remember that sweet little girl that used to answer the phone at the various businesses that you called? Now you must press one for Farsi, two for Russian, three for English. Then you are informed that if you do not know the extension of the party you wish to speak to, press 0 which usually doesn’t help at all and you end up speaking to no one.
Wasn’t it just great when you asked that sweet young lady to connect you to Mr. Smith and she did just that without a complete inquiry?
Have all those girls gone to China?
When I go to a retail store, rather than wait in line for a clerk I use the automatic checkout line and then I am on my way with a minimum of delay. Again what has happened to all of these people?
Most times when I need to buy something I start out by going to a major store that should carry this product. I am usually greeted by: “I’m sorry, we are out of stock right now but check back next week.”
My next step is to go online to Amazon or one of the others, place my order, and usually receive it within two to three days, right at my front door. I guess all of those salespeople and cashiers will be out of jobs soon.
I am one of those weird people that still reads the daily newspaper which is delivered directly to my house in a little plastic bag. The last time I looked, I think I was only one of two people left on my street receiving this service. Frankly hardly anyone that I speak to actually reads a newspaper.
Virtually everyone gets the news on TV, or their iPad, iPhone, or “i” whatever you call it. That is fine, but what is happening to all of those delivery people, especially the newspaper boy who used to ride by on his bicycle with a basket full of newspapers and throw them on the lawn.
Soon I will be worrying about the thousands of people that man those giant presses at the newspaper facility printing out millions of copies every day if no one is actually subscribing. Where did their jobs go? To China?
I used to know my bank tellers on a personal basis. It is been some time since I have actually had to go into a bank. To pay my bills I simply click a few buttons on my computer and the money is transferred from my checking account directly to the person I wish to pay. My incoming money is directly transferred to my account and I no longer have a need to go to the stationary store and buy envelopes or to the post office to buy stamps. Who needs them? More people out of work.
Try to look to the future. What else will be taken over by automation? We have all seen the pictures of the robots assembling trucks and automobiles at various factories with one or 2 people watching just to make sure everything is going smoothly. I would guess that perhaps millions of people have been displaced by these robots.
People used to hire others to come and clean up the dishes after a big meal and vacuum the floor. Who needs them anymore when you can buy a Roomba and a dishwasher to do both by simply pushing a few buttons?
Remember when you were expected to be late for dinner and you would drive along the road looking for one of those big boxes with a telephone hanging on the wall and hope that you had the correct change to make a call. The phone companies, of course, employed a lot of people to install and maintain the phones as well as the operators to tell you how much your call will cost. I guess it’s off to China for me and many others.
