I have a stack of virtual news clippings that either struck my fancy, taught me something new, or just made me shake my head in bemusement. On their own, they may not be enough for me to make a point, but together they have a thought-provoking synergy (and I'm sure I'll figure out what that is by the end of this column).
Our industry has been negatively affected by the loss of American manufacturing after we entered a long stretch of automation and outsourcing in the late 1970s; every recession has led to the loss of factory jobs that never returned. But the recovery from the pandemic recession has been different: American manufacturers have added enough jobs to regain all they shed, and more. The comeback isn't thanks to companies bringing back factory jobs that moved overseas, but boosters include pharmaceutical plants, craft breweries, and ice cream makers. Also, businesses are beginning to question the wisdom of producing so many goods in China amid rising tensions between Washington and Beijing over trade and technology; and COVID-19 crippled global supply chains, making domestic manufacturing more attractive to many operations.
Speaking of jobs, another report I found highly curious is Gen Z's idea of funemployment. Have you heard of this? It's a slang term used to describe those who lost their jobs and choose to use their newfound freedom in pursuit of leisure activities, like traveling and having fun until they find a new job. Now, in my day, when I lost my first job, I pounded the pavement until I got my second job. (Second cousin to GET OFF MY LAWN.) NYU professor Suzy Welch posits that these bulldozer kids feel so supported by protective parents that they're entitled to time off from jobs that mean little to them. (Ironically, the professor was married to the late Jack Welch, the one-time General Electric CEO known as Neutron Jack because of all the jobs he cut at GE.) Whether they don't want to be anything like their parents (the very folks who are supporting their lifestyles) or it's just a way of dictating the parameters of their lives and a healthier work-life balance, this 'brilliant or bonkers ethos affirms this generation has no interest in lifetime employment, and will
work on their terms, not anyone else's.
................................ More workers are demanding remote jobs for a better work-life balance, and it's incumbent upon employers to figure out what makes them happy or find themselves short-staffed. Companies have often regarded workers as a cost to be cut instead of an asset. Those days are gone.
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Another thing Gen Z loves is virtue signaling, which is the public expression of opinions intended to demonstrate one's good character or social conscience. Social media is full of virtue signalers, making people feel better about themselves while doing nothing. Companies have been affected positively (Black businesses during the BLM movement) and negatively (Chipotle; Target) by virtue signaling. Clearly, what we've seen happen since at least the start of the millennium is that business has become intricately intertwined with our personal lives. Just as in making a point in what appears at first to be a disjointed column, it's all about finding the right synergy that enables us to capitalize on our work and personal spaces.