[Milsurplus] Yalta Conference

[Peter Gottlieb]

On 11/7/2010 12:59 PM, J. Forster wrote:
>>    I don't believe this.  I've been to many factories here where the
>> workforce is dedicated and the jobs are coveted.
> Primarily high-tech factories, no?
Lead battery factory, a couple of furniture factories and the like.  
$20/hour typical pay after several years of employment.
>> Perhaps Americans
>> don't want to "work" at Walmart where wages are low and there are no
>> benefits?
> Being into surplus, I've had a lot of contact with warehouse workers and
> the like. Many simply do not have the smarts or skills to do much more.
> Their world revolves around a forklift and watching baseball or football.
Excuse the non-PC, but there's no cure for "stupid."  Flunking out of 
High School does not bode well.  Nevertheless, companies that offer a 
modicum of respect, help with benefits, and give a little training and 
job rotation can get a lot more from employees.
>> But even in that case, Americans do work there, although they
>> show no loyalty to their employer who shows them no respect whatsoever.
> Loyalty is a two-way street. The concept of an extended family which
> includes the employer as in Japan, is totally foreign in US business. If
> the contract ends, most are out the door.
Loyalty and respect must be earned.  I believe it is the responsibility 
of the employer to make the first moves, for they have the position of 
power.  If the employee does not take the hint and begin to return the 
respect, then he/she becomes unemployed, to be replaced with someone who 
"gets it."  From there it builds.