Apple hires 800 at $8/hr

[troutsqueezer]

Depending on the business, $8 may be just fine. But in my view, a rising tide should lift all boats. Apple's tide has risen to extreme heights, yet they don't pass it around except to a relatively few.

 

[ultrarunner]

I do know a fair number of people that are self employed...

In the medical field there are a lot of specialists when it comes to medical equipment... plus a lot of the anesthesiologists are self employed with no staff.

On the more down to earth side... every Real Estate Agent, most CPAs and Lawyers I know are self employed or have maybe one employee if not a spouse.

One guy I know came here from Cambodia in the boat lift with nothing... he has four children and the youngest just graduated from Cal Berkeley as an Engineer... plus he has a Doctor, a Lawyer and a Nurse...

He managed to support his family mowing lawns and landscaping yards... 4 kids... all college grads and all worked with Mom and Dad mowing lawns, digging ditches and installing sprinklers plus hauling trash... this wasn't 20 or 30 years ago... this is today. He tells me he will keep doing yards for his customers because it's his job...also said it inspired his kids to strive for more and they did...

Another good friend gave up the corporate world and cleans sewers... has a van and a two cable machines and is as busy as he wants to be... grossed 140k last year before expenses... he is one working fool and if I called him at 2am on a Sunday morning he would say... on my way... see you in 45 minutes.

With the exception of my Mom... everyone has been self employed... small family farmers on one side and small business on the other.

Another guy does nothing but repair roof leaks and clears gutters... is licensed and insured and makes a good living...

One more to round things off is a tree guy... all he does is take down trees... he doesn't hual or stack... all he does is cut and drop and charges $50 an hour with a four hour minum and is one busy tree monkee... Sunday morning he is in his shed tuning up the saws for the next weeks work.

 

[Cat_Driver]

Yeah, they improved the bottom line of all the Chinese companies that make their cheap crap and then cover themselves in the American flag. I have NEVER shopped at a Wal Mart and never will. Thank God I have that right to choose.

How myopic peopel are. I can guarantee this. There are Chinese parts on every car built, every tractor built and every appliance built. So if boycotters are true to their convictions, then don't buy a car, tractor, cement, wallboard, appliances, windows, glass, computer, phone etc. Become Amish then the boycotters will have credibility with me. until then all the boycotters are nothing more than a hypocrite. Sorta like all the "vegetarians" that wear leather shoes, leather belt, leather purse, etc.

I don't care where it says it was " built" there are some parts came from China on almost everything. So until people boycott EVERYTHING made in China, I take what they say with a grain of salt.

Furthermore Walmart has created more jobs in the U.S.A. that any other corporation in the world. From American tug Boat workers, American dock workers, American electricians, American fork lift operators, American warehouse workers, American real estate brokers, American cashiers, American stock bots, American managers, American supervisors, American Bankers, American Accountants, American plumbers, American ....I think you get the point.

So tell me again WHO they are boycotting when they don't shop at Wal Mart, ya that's right they are boycotting AMERICAN WORKERS, which in my book is UN-AMERICAN.

 

[Gale Hawkins]

WM I was reading has raised the standard of living of people who have not increased their income but can buy more for less thanks to WM.

Locally some WM staff is starting to retire with some real money because they got into their stock purchasing plan years ago.

Yes there are losers in the supply chain when Sam cut the waste in the supply chain.

 

[Steppenwolfe]

How myopic peopel are. I can guarantee this. There are Chinese parts on every car built, every tractor built and every appliance built. So if boycotters are true to their convictions, then don't buy a car, tractor, cement, wallboard, appliances, windows, glass, computer, phone etc. Become Amish then the boycotters will have credibility with me. until then all the boycotters are nothing more than a hypocrite. Sorta like all the "vegetarians" that wear leather shoes, leather belt, leather purse, etc.

I don't care where it says it was " built" there are some parts came from China on almost everything. So until people boycott EVERYTHING made in China, I take what they say with a grain of salt.

Furthermore Walmart has created more jobs in the U.S.A. that any other corporation in the world. From American tug Boat workers, American dock workers, American electricians, American fork lift operators, American warehouse workers, American real estate brokers, American cashiers, American stock bots, American managers, American supervisors, American Bankers, American Accountants, American plumbers, American ....I think you get the point.

So tell me again WHO they are boycotting when they don't shop at Wal Mart, ya that's right they are boycotting AMERICAN WORKERS, which in my book is UN-AMERICAN.

Complete B.S. Go by yourself a nice pair of $12 shoes. You deserve a present for that tirade. Oh, and maybe take a minute to think about that lucky Chinese guy who got paid 35 cents to make your p.o.s. cheap goods.

 

[Pixguy]

Complete B.S. Go by yourself a nice pair of $12 shoes. You deserve a present for that tirade. Oh, and maybe take a minute to think about that lucky Chinese guy who got paid 35 cents to make your p.o.s. cheap goods.

and what kind of US made pair of shoes do you wear? what US made car do you drive?

 

[farmgirl19]

and what kind of US made pair of shoes do you wear? what US made car do you drive?

Most of my clothing is USA made, via special order, and yes, with USA fabrics any time available, which is often. I don't think the foreign countries know how to make a bra with a cup size (over B) to fit some of the American women. Shoes, American (Usually Texas) leather goes into the making of my spike heels, and my Roper boots, by a local shoemaker.

I can gripe about things, since I do my best to put my money where my mouth is. If you want to claim the issue is folks wanting CHEAP, and you are looking for cheap yourself, keep shopping Walmart and Sams' Club and see where it gets you in another 5-10 years.

I'll throw down the gauntlet....How many of the rest of you avoid buying foreign made on a daily basis? Or do you whine and buy whatever cr*p is there, because it is available and cost less than going down the road?

As a friend of mine used to say, "Don't sh*t me an old t*rd!"

 

[Pixguy]

Most of my clothing is USA made, via special order, and yes, with USA fabrics any time available, which is often. I don't think the foreign countries know how to make a bra with a cup size (over B) to fit some of the American women. Shoes, American (Usually Texas) leather goes into the making of my spike heels, and my Roper boots, by a local shoemaker. I can gripe about things, since I do my best to put my money where my mouth is. If you want to claim the issue is folks wanting CHEAP, and you are looking for cheap yourself, keep shopping Walmart and Sams' Club and see where it gets you in another 5-10 years. I'll throw down the gauntlet....How many of the rest of you avoid buying foreign made on a daily basis? Or do you whine and buy whatever cr*p is there, because it is available and cost less than going down the road? As a friend of mine used to say, "Don't sh*t me an old t*rd!"

I'm was curios about Step, but appreciate your input FG. I could crack a cup joke here but for once, I'll be nice.

I do try to buy American but fall short daily. I do have 3 cars in the driveway, none more than 4 years old and all "assembled" in US.

Kudos to those of you who can better.

 

[farmgirl19]

I'm was curios about Step, but appreciate your input FG. I could crack a cup joke here but for once, I'll be nice.

Thanks, pix! Point is, the places our clothing is coming from now, most of them have never had to worry about NEEDING a bra that FITS.

I do try to buy American but fall short daily. I do have 3 cars in the driveway, none more than 4 years old and all "assembled" in US.

Kudos to those of you who can better.

I believe we could turn things around, but people want the newest technology, in the palm of their hand, and they want it as soon as it comes out. If everyone got serious, and refused to buy the foreign made stuff, that won't last anyway, so one will pay the price of quality, American Made, in the long run, due to replacement costs, we could make a difference.

The problem is folks being apathetic, wanting instant gratification, and wanting cheap.

 

[houstonscott]

I look at labels, and won't by products made in China. When faced with decisions on labels I country shop. I also have been a person to search out the very best highest quality item, I'm willing to spend 3 times the cost to get the product that out lasts all others and doesn't break. I have found in the long run this has always been cheaper, just the German in me. Yeah, I bought a Kubota lawn mower in 1992, $750, when a lawn mower could be had for $99. Guess what it still runs and works like new. Frankly to get that quality it's seldom the US that has the product, but that seems to be changing. HS

 

[Wood_Butcher_Dav]

Labels only tell part of the story. Where did the tooling come from to make the widget here? How many tool and die shops are still around? It's a global economy. The Big Green sources stuff from China, Vietnam as well as European countries.

Dave

 

[Steppenwolfe]

I have an F 350, from the Ford Kentucky plant, and an F 150 from the Dearborn plant. I don't know where all the variuos components come from. My Redwing boots , I think, are American made. I do own 3 Kubotas, I chose because of quality. I only buy Makita tools because of the quality. My tractor attatchments are made in America by Everything Attacthments. After that I am sure everything else I own is from over seas. But, my point was against Wally World, not over seas made products. Wal Mart started this cheap crap binge in the 80's, now look where we are. They also keep wages down to line the family members pockets, period. So don't sit so high in that saddle, WM could be a shining beacon of humanity, yet hangs their head in shame.

 

[Wooddust]

Lets see STARTING wage $8 an hour. Not enough to do all the things one would like to do. But it is enough to live or survive on.

First these jobs are in the USA. These people will be putting $$ back in the economy. While not paying income tax at that rate of pay the will be paying other taxes. All good things. Some of them will also qualify for food stamps. It could also take some of them off the welfare rolls as well.

Starting Wage is just that a "Starting Wage". Most if not all of these people will have to be trained, depending on the job, the ones that work out will move up and earn more $$$. While being trained they are not an asset to the company, it takes time & $$$ to train people.

At some point in time these folks will need to earn the company more that it costs to work them. Company's have to pay SSI, workers comp on top of the wages. A company has to make $$ to stay in business, if not happening it goes out of business in time.

In the USA Apple employs thousands of people, most all of them make far more than minimum wage.

Now the kick at Wal-Mart. It employs many thousands of workers in the USA. Recently it started buying only USA made goods. May take a while to get that done, but it is starting. More jobs in the US. I have niece that works for them, she started at minimum wage and now is the head of the tire department.
Wal-mart also tries to employ older retired folks who need more or extra income. Look around next trip by a store.
Wal- Mart also has better employe health insurance than anything offered under Obama Care.

Fry's & Safeway stores hire a lot of people that are mostly unemployable, use them as baggers, cleaning & sweeping.

Another Big Plus is Most People feel good about being able to work and earning their way in life.

Before you go bashing company's, they are the backbone of America. With out them there would be no America.

This is the goal of the current white house. Class warfare and turning American against American. Pray we can survive this festering rot

 

[TedBell]

What is often overlooked is automation. Companies, especially big ones, can leverage automation to decrease costs (and employment) while bumping up their profits (and bonuses). A smaller company cannot take advantage of automation to the same extent due to capital costs. This automation has really scaled up the last decade and has cost many people their jobs.

Big business used to have more of a social contract with employees and their country than they do now. Companies are not really 'American' anymore; they are global companies that have patriotism to their return on capital and profits. The S&P 500 gets about 45% of revenue abroad. They will always chase cheap labor abroad unless it costs them otherwise.

Walmart creates a monopoly at the local level by driving out smaller businesses. So they have a lot of leverage over the local labor market, among other things. I have to wonder if this is really capitalism (at the local level anyway). It is not a good situation for the labor market, but it is for the consumer looking for a cheap product (if said consumer has a job).

And then there is the saying "the problem with capitalism is there is not enough capitalists left". That is where we are headed with all the mergers and acquisitions. This hurts the job market because you don't have two payroll depts, two marketing depts etc. The merged companies only need one of these departments and that increases their leverage in the marketplace.

 

[crash325]

Boeing to End Pension Plans for Nonunion Employees

Boeing Co. said on Thursday it will end pension plans for 68,000 nonunion employees, including its chief executive, marking the latest step in the company's shift away from defined-benefit plans.

The change takes effect Jan. 1, 2016, and reflects the company's effort to reduce the growing costs of its pension plans. Boeing said it expects to take a $110 million non-cash charge in the first quarter for the pension change.

The company previously announced charges of $140 million and $80 million for making similar changes to labor agreements with union machinists in the Seattle area and in St. Louis.

Since 2009, all new hires of nonunion employees and new hires of union employees represented by 28 unions have received defined-contribution plans instead of pensions.

Boeing said the defined-contribution plans allow it to "better predict and manage financial risks."

Nonunion workers including managers and executives will keep what they have earned in their pensions through December 31, 2015, and then switch to a new defined-contribution retirement plan, Boeing said.

The employees will also keep an existing 401(k) plan in which Boeing matches a portion of their savings.

The changes mirror those made to benefits of union workers.

Earlier this year, 31,000 union machinists in the Pacific Northwest narrowly approved a similar change as part of an eight-year extension of their labor contract.

In exchange for that and other concessions, Boeing agreed to build its new 777X jetliner and its wings in Washington state, ensuring that the machinists would continue to perform that work.

Boeing said it is making the changes so it can continue paying "market-leading" retirement benefits while also "assuring our competitiveness by curbing the unsustainable growth of our long-term pension liability."

© 2014 Thomson/Reuters. All rights reserved.

Read Latest Breaking News from Newsmax.com Boeing to End Pension Plans for Nonunion Employees
Urgent: Should Obamacare Be Repealed? Vote Here Now!

 

[crash325]

Small businesses in the USA actually employ more people than large, such as Boeing or Wally World. That be businesses with less than 5 employees.

Now should you want to go into business for yourself it doesn't take a lot of $$. Most important is an idea & lots of hard work. Find a niche & fill it.
Keep your job even a minimum wage if that is all you can find. Then work your butt off on your own little company. Good credit will help, but you can do it with near zero $$.
I started a tire mounting, balancing & alignment business with nothing more than good credit. Had 2 employees.
Started a jewelry teaching school on little more than than my good looks. Has some help from friends (labor wise.) Worked at making jewelry during the day. Taught jewelry making at night.
Use to pick up a few hundred $$ a month after I got my tractor doing most anything that I could get paid for. Not much work in my area at the moment. But with some fliers & a few signs I could do more than I want to. Sort of just got tired& didn't want to do much any more.

Found a niche on E-Bay & did that for a few years. Produced wood wood turning squares & pen blanks. wood not readily available in lots of areas, mesquite, cat claw, iron wood & such. Produced several different CD's That sold pretty well.
Made & sold wooden ball point & ink pens for a few years. Had my own design boxes to put them in. (Not on E-bay) Mostly through trophy shops & Jewelry stores + personal contacts.

Some people that I have known.
A friend that owned a hobby shop, along with 4 others bough the Kentucky C. franchises from LA south & eat to Yuma.
One friend made several thousand $$ a month on E-bay. He found a niche.

Mexicans in this area are real enterprising, Food from push carts to large van trucks, hauling & selling hay, Hand crafts, used tire shops, little roofing & construction company's, Scrounging up scrap metal.

Just a few little things to think on.

 

[ultrarunner]

When I started in the corporate world... the defined contribution was just taking hold.

Twenty five years later, defined contribution is just a memory... sure, the 401k is still offered... it's just the company hasn't matched since 2006 and now says it never will.

Add that to vesting issues when management changes and my hindsight is 20/20

If I had it to do over... I would have stayed self employed. The lure of benefits and even parents being so happy for me to have a corporate job with benefits that tipped the balance all those years ago.

With all the take aways over the last 15 years, I'm just about to the point hanging my shingle and heading out the door.

Funny thing is just about all of my close friends were my age or younger when they retired with 90% pensions and medical... boy have things changed...

Most retired from the big utilities, government, law enforcement and military careers.

Thanks to the affordable healthcare act... shouldn't I be a prime candidate for coverage???

 

[Cat_Driver]

. Wal Mart started this cheap crap binge in the 80's, now look where we are. They also keep wages down to line the family members pockets, period.

I'm not a Walmart of China Fan boy, I'm a "can't believe people are so uninformed boy"

OK this is getting hilarious now. So people are upset because Wal Mart sells Mustard, Ketchup, potato chips, and thousands of OTHER AMERICAN MADE products cheap - This somehow is a PROBLEM. How is me paying Walmart $1.00 for a bottle of Ketchup BAD because I don't want to pat $3.00 for the same bottle of ketchup at the name brand grocery store, or local Mom and Pop shop?

Also Walmart buys from the same vendors in China as Sears, Penny's Target, and hundreds of other big name box stores, yet Walmart is the Bad guy. Why don't all the NAY SAYERS just say " I WON'T BUT FROM ANY STORE EVER AGAIN" and only shop at Amish stores. You all should be equal opportunity boycotters.

Ya what a HORRIBLE company Walmart is realizing if they sell 1000 bottles of Ketchup and only make a nickle is better than selling 4 bottles of ketchup and making $2.00 a bottle. They should be strung up for being so unethical and conniving.

If anyone spent five minutes reading a little they would understand that Sam Walton started the same as every MOM & POP shop in the world - OH NO SAY IT ISN'T SO, he must have been a rich corporate evil doer.

In 1950, the Waltons left Newport for Bentonville, where Sam opened Walton’s 5&10 on the downtown square. They chose Bentonville because Helen wanted small-town living, and Sam could take advantage of the different hunting seasons that living at the corner of four states had to offer.

So since Sanny boy was a Mom and Pop shop like the millions of other Mom & Pop Shops, but did one thing no other Mom and Pop shop did - Sam Walton’s goals for great value and great customer service, something 99% of thy Mom & pop shops DID NOT DO.

Now you want me to educate you on Mr. Marriott, who started in his own Root Beer stand, now Marriott is a MEGA giant in the Hospitality industry . Yes Mr. Marriott also gave GOOD SERVICE at a great price - Gee who knew it was that easy.

How about Henry Ford, yep he did the same this as Mr. Marriott and Sam Walton. I think you get my point, most corporations started in garages, or in small operations and grew. For me, I slept on a Garage floor and ate peanut butter and Jelly every day for two years before my corporation made money, and it make my head explode when an employee wants to walk in the door and make more in one week than I made after two years of suffering. Oh, and my secret is the same as Marriott, Ford, Walton, give good service at a great price.