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There are plenty of workers. The shortage is the number of people willing to bag groceries for the offered wage and work conditions. Companies can solve this pr

There are plenty of workers. The shortage is the number of people willing to bag groceries for the offered wage and work conditions. Companies can solve this pretty easily.

AnimalMuppet 4y ago
Companies can solve that pretty easily by raising wages... at the price of their business model. Grocery stores run on something like 1% margins, so if they raise wages, they either raise prices or go out of business. It's not just "accept less profit" for many businesses. (For some businesses, yes, they could accept less profit. Those tend to be the ones that raise wages when they can't get enough workers, because they have the incentive to do so.)
- quantified 4y ago
  This is why the American economy needs lots of poor people and no safety net, so that the business models work.
  - deleted 4y ago
    [deleted]
  - Pet_Ant 4y ago
    I know it’s meant facetiously, but I think it’s true. Without WalMart prices would the taco truck be able to offer the prices it does which maybe the most affordable way for some workers to eat, and the only job those taco makers have… we are on a precipice here.
    - quantified 4y ago
      The only way people clock into crappy jobs for little money is because they need to. If your produce was picked by someone paying $12/hr or more, it'd be a lot more expensive. It's absolutely true.
  - AnimalMuppet 4y ago
    If the grocery stores' business model doesn't work, that's not going to work out well for the poor people either...
- fred_is_fred 4y ago
  Looks like plenty of room for this in groceries. https://www.yahoo.com/now/kroger-reports-third-quarter-2022-121500078.html https://www.yahoo.com/now/kroger-reports-third-quarter-2022-...
jelliclesfarm 4y ago
The solution is the automation of low wage jobs. I fail to understand why they still exist in the developed world. When will we make that shift..and eliminate them entirely?
- etempleton 4y ago
  The automation for checking out and bagging groceries is terrible unless you are only buying a few things. It is slower and puts the work onto the customer.
  - jlokier 4y ago
    In the UK here. I haven't seen a grocery bagger in over 30 years, and usually don't use a grocery cashier either. The work is done by the customer but I never found it burdensome. I shop for groceries almost every day currently but in the past did large shops every 1 to 2 weeks, with quite varied loads. Is there a reason it's particularly difficult to bag your own groceries in the USA?
    - etempleton 4y ago
      I am not familiar with the UK model, but there isn’t enough room in the automated systems in the US. There isn’t really enough room for the carts or for bagging groceries. Beyond a single bag. The systems are really designed around buying a few items.

There are plenty of workers. The shortage is the number of people willing to bag groceries for the offered wage and work conditions. Companies can solve this pretty easily.

AnimalMuppet 4y ago

Companies can solve that pretty easily by raising wages... at the price of their business model. Grocery stores run on something like 1% margins, so if they raise wages, they either raise prices or go out of business. It's not just "accept less profit" for many businesses. (For some businesses, yes, they could accept less profit. Those tend to be the ones that raise wages when they can't get enough workers, because they have the incentive to do so.)

quantified 4y ago
This is why the American economy needs lots of poor people and no safety net, so that the business models work.
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
- Pet_Ant 4y ago
  I know it’s meant facetiously, but I think it’s true. Without WalMart prices would the taco truck be able to offer the prices it does which maybe the most affordable way for some workers to eat, and the only job those taco makers have… we are on a precipice here.
  - quantified 4y ago
    The only way people clock into crappy jobs for little money is because they need to. If your produce was picked by someone paying $12/hr or more, it'd be a lot more expensive. It's absolutely true.
- AnimalMuppet 4y ago
  If the grocery stores' business model doesn't work, that's not going to work out well for the poor people either...
fred_is_fred 4y ago
Looks like plenty of room for this in groceries. https://www.yahoo.com/now/kroger-reports-third-quarter-2022-121500078.html https://www.yahoo.com/now/kroger-reports-third-quarter-2022-...

jelliclesfarm 4y ago

The solution is the automation of low wage jobs. I fail to understand why they still exist in the developed world. When will we make that shift..and eliminate them entirely?

etempleton 4y ago
The automation for checking out and bagging groceries is terrible unless you are only buying a few things. It is slower and puts the work onto the customer.
- jlokier 4y ago
  In the UK here. I haven't seen a grocery bagger in over 30 years, and usually don't use a grocery cashier either. The work is done by the customer but I never found it burdensome. I shop for groceries almost every day currently but in the past did large shops every 1 to 2 weeks, with quite varied loads. Is there a reason it's particularly difficult to bag your own groceries in the USA?
  - etempleton 4y ago
    I am not familiar with the UK model, but there isn’t enough room in the automated systems in the US. There isn’t really enough room for the carts or for bagging groceries. Beyond a single bag. The systems are really designed around buying a few items.