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RWood · 04-21-2009, 12:55 AM

It is often the case with politicians passing "great laws" that are intended to help people but they never take into consideration the impacts these laws have on the companies (and universities in this case) that have to abide by the new laws.

This new regulation Patricia spoke of raises the cost to the university of part-time employees -- designed to give them a higher standard of living. Some may get it. Others will lose employment completely. From the University's point-of-view, the cost of operation just increased. They can either cut staff or raise fees. If they raise fees (and they may not be able to raise fees), then enrollment will decline and they will also need to cut staff. Either way, some people are going to lose their jobs.

In the US there is a movement for a "living wage." This is often far above the minimum wage that politicians love to shout about. Again, when the minimum wage is increased or a "living wage" law is passed, many people lose their jobs. From a business management perspective, there are limits to how much a job is worth. Sometimes the labor rate gets so high it is more economical to replace the people with automation. Sometimes the job just goes away.

When the last minimum wage increase went into effect here I remember the changes a friend did at his Subway (sandwich shop) to cope:

Bathrooms are now cleaned twice a day rather than every hour
Floors are swept at shift change rather than every hour
One less prep person, more meats and cheeses purchased pre-sliced
No breaks for line staff from 11:30 to 1:30 lunch rush
Shift manager is now cashier at lunch rush and not available to assist in bottleneck situations
No overtime

In the past if there was a rush just before closing he would allow the employees to stay on the clock to clean up, even if they ran into overtime charges. Now they are expected to finish their work within the time allowed. If they cannot, they are replaced. He is not happy about it but even with the changes his labor costs went up. Food costs have increased. He does not want to raise prices or he will lose business. The margins in his restaurant are very thin.

I have other examples from other companies in other industries. I won't bore you with them. They all tell a tale of Government mandated rate for services that often prices the unskilled young worker out of a job.

04-21-2009, 12:55 AM	#2730
RWood Technogeezer Posts: 7,233 Karma: 1601464 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Virginia, USA Device: Sony PRS-500	It is often the case with politicians passing "great laws" that are intended to help people but they never take into consideration the impacts these laws have on the companies (and universities in this case) that have to abide by the new laws. This new regulation Patricia spoke of raises the cost to the university of part-time employees -- designed to give them a higher standard of living. Some may get it. Others will lose employment completely. From the University's point-of-view, the cost of operation just increased. They can either cut staff or raise fees. If they raise fees (and they may not be able to raise fees), then enrollment will decline and they will also need to cut staff. Either way, some people are going to lose their jobs. In the US there is a movement for a "living wage." This is often far above the minimum wage that politicians love to shout about. Again, when the minimum wage is increased or a "living wage" law is passed, many people lose their jobs. From a business management perspective, there are limits to how much a job is worth. Sometimes the labor rate gets so high it is more economical to replace the people with automation. Sometimes the job just goes away. When the last minimum wage increase went into effect here I remember the changes a friend did at his Subway (sandwich shop) to cope: Bathrooms are now cleaned twice a day rather than every hour Floors are swept at shift change rather than every hour One less prep person, more meats and cheeses purchased pre-sliced No breaks for line staff from 11:30 to 1:30 lunch rush Shift manager is now cashier at lunch rush and not available to assist in bottleneck situations No overtime In the past if there was a rush just before closing he would allow the employees to stay on the clock to clean up, even if they ran into overtime charges. Now they are expected to finish their work within the time allowed. If they cannot, they are replaced. He is not happy about it but even with the changes his labor costs went up. Food costs have increased. He does not want to raise prices or he will lose business. The margins in his restaurant are very thin. I have other examples from other companies in other industries. I won't bore you with them. They all tell a tale of Government mandated rate for services that often prices the unskilled young worker out of a job.