The other afternoon I remembered that I never had lunch. I went into the McDonald’s on Telegraph Road. By the door they had a vertical banner promising “$1 Any Size Soft Drink.” I ordered a double cheeseburger and a “$1.00 Ice Tea.” That cost $3.00 (exactly). The young man at the counter gave me a kiddie cup: I mentioned the banner. “Ice tea isn’t included.” To get a large tea cost an additional 27¢.
Okay, I gave him another dollar. Alas, he didn’t know how to get the terminal to upgrade my drink. A co-worker told him what buttons to push. He did, put my dollar in the register, gave me the large cup, then closed the register. I asked about my 73¢ change: the only person with “the code” to open the terminal wasn’t in the restaurant.
McDonald’s is “Committed To Being America’s Best First Job.” Click here for video. Not entirely true.
You see, the kid messing up my order was the only employee under age 35. The other six people in that restaurant probably needed Mickey Dees paychecks to feed their families. Pay for established workers in fast food seldom passes $10 an hour in this market, with many managers earning just $12 or $13 an hour. And, remember, assistant managers often don’t get 40 hours per week: their hours get limited to avoid paying benefits.
The number of unemployed Americans – and Missourians – keeps creeping down. In April just 4.4% of available workers were unemployed. Missouri’s unemployment rate tracks below the national average, hitting 3.9% this March. [ click here ] Unfortunately, the more important national unemployment number is 8.6%. That’s “U6 – Total unemployed, plus all persons marginally attached to the labor force, plus total employed part time for economic reasons…” [ click here ], in simpler words, add-in ‘involuntarily part-time’ such as many McDonald’s workers.
Most important is that while employers have scads of openings for better jobs, Missouri doesn’t do much to prepare workers for those positions.
For example, the construction industry needs young workers. In the major cities of this state unions provide the training for carpenters, iron workers, flooring installers and such. This session the GOP dominated legislature did all it could to kill unions. Where will young people learn how to safely ground a three-phase converter?
Another example, CORTEX, the Danforth Plant Science Center and other hi-tech places need people with specific college-taught skills. Remember what happened to higher education funding this month?
Yet, we can never forget that most Americans and Missourians are, well, average. Average people used to work in manufacturing, processing paperwork, answering phones and a myriad of other worthy occupations. Most of those jobs left us.
What’s left? Retail sales, cleaning and maintenance, delivery and distribution, and, hospitality – places like McDonalds.
Will community colleges begin training “fast fooders” to become managers? Will the state pay for truck driving training? Classes on toilet scrubbing? Don’t hold your breath.
This problem plagues efforts to move moms from welfare to work. This March no one in Work Activities for Temporary Assistance recipients was in On The Job Training and just 70 people statewide were in Education Related To Employment. Fewer than 1,600 of 7,541 adults on the rolls were even in those required Work Activities! [click here] The Republican crown jewel of turning ‘welfare recipients’ into self-sufficient workers fails miserably.
The best way to improve the lot of average workers? Raise the minimum wage! In round numbers, every $1 increase in the wage adds $1,000 to annual earnings of the typical part-time.
Yeah, Washington or Jefferson City won’t let that happen.
The result? Average workers keep getting poorer and employers thirst for trained people. Missouri fails to live up to its potential.
The manager finally arrived to free my 73¢. While waiting (and waiting) I ate my cheeseburger at the counter. That wasn’t appreciated. Tough.
Submitted by Glenn Koenen, WCD Member