Worker Shortage: A shortage of workers can be excellent news for the economy! Maybe, just maybe, companies will wake up and see the huge contribution workers make to their success. Some CEOs take unscrupulous sums and destroy the value of their companies, unlike many front-line workers who create value. During the pandemic, CEOs have made big bucks through layoffs. Some companies have sought protection from bankruptcy, but that hasn’t stopped greedy CEOs from snatching the hefty bonuses.
We have a shortage of workers and companies are scrambling to hire whoever wants to. Some companies, such as McDonald’s, have paid signing bonuses. Canada’s Loblaw and its competitors paid a bonus to frontline workers when the pandemic hit. They discontinued after three months in unison with their rivals. When the government confronted them with this collaboration, they claimed it happened independently. Who do you know? It’s like if you grab your three-year-old daughter’s hand in her cookie jar and say, Mom, “Cookie Monster did this!”
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The inevitable shortage of ill-treated workers
Loblaw’s behavior bothers me. During the bonus period, profits go up. By itself, this is not a problem. I support companies that make money. I am certainly against the government taxing profits. But paying workers bonuses during a pandemic should not depend on earnings. was right. Meanwhile, my wife and I shopped at Loblaw and the staff continued their excellent service despite being ignored by Loblaw.
Leaders must recognize that frontline employees are the foundation of the company and treat them well, not as workers giving bonuses to executives! When employers treat workers like machines, they cut themselves off. Over several decades, Gallup said, they and other researchers have found a strong link between employee engagement in the workplace and overall company performance. However, employers refuse to accept this. But there’s good news: Research shows that some companies are breaking the mold and treating employees with respect: Cisco, Apple, Accenture, IBM, and FedEx are just a few.
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Next quarter earnings boost business
Companies see the next quarter as the prize, so they exploit workers and manipulate the next quarter’s numbers. I repeat: I am against the taxation of state corporations. However, I support Biden’s Build Back Better requirement to tax stock buybacks passed by the House and she’s a senator, even if it has a modest effect on stock buybacks. Corporations should not spend billions buying back stock while exploiting workers.
Companies must present to shareholder meetings options for the use of buyback funds. Options could include the effects of paying frontline workers bonuses with buyback funds. Shareholders should also hear about potential strategic investments. Another option is to stop buybacks for five years after layoffs. Nor are executives expected to receive bonuses five years after layoffs. We must get rid of the exploitation of workers that increases CEO bonuses.
The Disappearance of Stakeholder Capitalism at the Business Roundtable
The Business Roundtable (BRT) was unveiled in 2019 and determined that maximizing shareholder value is not the company’s sole objective. He said that this ’80s analogy is wrong. She wrote that BRT “… came up with beautiful ideas of caring for stakeholders and quickly abandoned them and reverted to their own rapacious practices…” They continued to shy away from these bromides during the pandemic.
May the shortage of workers continue! It can be the force to rid companies of myopic, greedy, and incompetent executives. Sure, shortages will lead to disruptions to supply chains and more, but workers’ creativity, if allowed, will solve these challenges. Here’s the million-dollar question: Will enough companies decide to end the quarterly rat race and focus on building a strong long-term business?
Michelle A. Bill is the author of six books, including Business Simplified, Speaker, Adjunct Professor of Business Administration at Briercrest College and Seminary, and Founder and President of Managing God’s Money, a mission dedicated to providing free Christian and evangelical financial advice.
