I’m noticing no shortage of viable job opportunities from fast food to laying asphalt

I’ve been watching the signs at various businesses for while. It’s kind of a hobby.

It used to be that stores would post funny or inspirational stuff, like the classic eat here and get gas. But lately it seems that all I see are “Now Hiring,” or the more pretentious looking for new team members.

Everybody is hiring now that I don’t need or even want a job. In fact I am a little leery of even driving through some fast food places. I have visions of them springing roadblocks on unsuspecting customers, and hauling them off to fry burgers or fish or chicken like the British navy used to press gang sailors.

I even saw a fast food sign recently advising that new workers could earn a $100 sign-on bonus. I don’t know the rules but I thought those kind of offers were only available to critically needed medical people.

Fast food franchises are offering $12 an hour or more for new employees on their signs. Some large discount stores are advertising $15 an hour starting pay. I saw a billboard in St. Louis telling me asphalt layers could start at $20 an hour.

I looked online and warehouses were looking for order pickers at $15 an hour. And most of these jobs, including fast food, come with benefits, like health care and savings plans.

I heard on the radio I could get $20 an hour working at a local scrapyard.

I made the mistake of looking up employment online and I was flooded with job opportunities. Door Dash wants me to drive for them and be my own boss. If I was going to work I would want a better boss than me. Everyone is offering flexible hours, varying work shifts and paid time off. It’s a rat race out there for employers with everyone having to compete for a shrinking pool of workers, many afraid to go out because of COVID-19.

Retired people like me are a prime target for part-time work. I hadn’t been retired a week when a guy at the barbershop offered me a part-time job. He said he loved retired guys because they always showed up for work.

I know that the other day at the supermarket, the woman bringing my groceries out for me to pick up was obviously retired but a lot spryer than I am.

From what I see on the signs, it seems to me that it may very well be that the $15 an hour minimum wage people are agitating for won’t come by legislation, but from competition.

Of course there is another side to a shortage of workers. Businesses may learn to do without.

Self checkouts are springing up all over the place. There are even self pickup kiosks for deliveries.

My experience at chain store

I went into a large discount drugstore chain store the other evening, picked up an item and walked to the front registers. There was no one there but a sign said to call if you needed help with the self-checkout.

I can only assume I was under surveillance but it seemed eerie not to even see a human in sight. I could hear voices so I think someone was in the pharmacy part of the store.

I order stuff and have it delivered, but I hope brick and mortar stores don’t disappear completely. Sometimes you want it now, not two or three days from now even with free shipping. And people need jobs.