Workers' Changing Attitudes Tighten Labor Market

 

I read the article "Workers' changing attitudes tighten labor market" in the Wall Street Journal. It talks about the relationship between workers and their jobs, how workers care about how they're treated and have others things to do with their time. As social attitudes have changed over time, so have attitudes toward work. Which is shown through strikes, such as the recent railroad strike and the Minnesota nurses walk off. Workers want a higher wage and to be treated better, whether it's through the amount of sick days they have or not having to work in unsafe conditions. The effect of these changing attitudes is shown through how in recent years labor has become more expensive and scarcer. Sometimes these changes are from an event, like WW2 causing a big boost in women's labor force participation. The COVID-19 pandemic changed what workers were willing to do, for how long, and for how much. The willingness to work is changed by the alternatives becoming more appealing and by the work itself becoming more unpleasant. With covid pushing the workforce to work from home, many workers could feel that quitting is better than having to go back to an office. As they have enjoyed the time spent at home with family or maybe because working in person is too much of an risk. While the unemployment rate of 3.7% is similar to pre-covid times, the amount of vacant jobs is still high and has not gone down. The participation rate had a sharp drop with the pandemic and has not recovered since. The Fed does surveys that asks how many those who reply would like to work, and that number dropped for not only full time workers but for part time and those out of the labor force. With industry's like nursing homes, the pandemic amplified the staffing crisis as the feeling of being underpaid and overworked existed before covid. The downfall in the supply of workers shows that people are no longer willing to tolerate the conditions for the same pay. The attitude toward work though is always changing, and is starting to move again. As the desired work hours, labor force participation rate, and even number of workers in the office all move towards pre-covid levels. A high unemployment rate can reverse views on work, but as we transition into a period of time after covid the attitude toward work changes with it. The changing work attitude is how the industry grows and adapts to what the labor force wants and needs to join. This recent attitude may be already moving back, but the impact left should hopefully have an positive effect on the relationship between workers and their jobs.

 

 https://www.wsj.com/articles/workers-changing-attitudes-tighten-labor-market-11663765201