Originally Posted By: Guitarhacker

From what I'm seeing in other industries.......

The race to the bottom is almost complete.


From my perspective, a big part of the problem (at least in the US) is that globalization and the "gig-economy" has all but done away with loyalty in the workplace. Employers are not loyal to their employees and vice versa.

There was a time that a blue-collar worker could steadily work his/her way up the company ladder over the course of say 30 or 40 years and retire with a relatively nice nest egg and their house paid off. For their part, white-collar workers could expect a comfortable retirement check each month until they die and in some cases a hefty death benefit for their surviving spouse.

These "perks" have all but vanished due to global market forces and so nobody is loyal to anyone. Small business owners can't afford to pay decent wages because their competition isn't. Employers pay the minimum they can get away with and in return they get low quality/low motivation workers who quit for an additional 25 cents per hour somewhere else, creating turn-over and churn. Meanwhile the ratio of CEO salary to average worker salary continues to climb.

Ever call tech support for a problem with your cell phone or smart TV?
1. You better have good communication skills because the person answering the phone probably won't and
2. The better educated you are to help them help you is invaluable.

On the 2nd point I'm slowly reaching a point of cell phone knowledge that's beginning to rival that of the tech support people I call for help.

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BiaB 2026 Windows
For me there’s no better place in the band than to have one leg in the harmony world and the other in the percussive. Thank you Paul Tutmarc and Leo Fender.