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UPS Union Issues
True Inflation, Company Profits, and COLA's..and Why I Am Voting No.
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<blockquote data-quote="Bagels" data-source="post: 1128584" data-attributes="member: 43436"><p>I'm going to disagree with much of your analysis. No disagreement that PT wages (even if the starting wage is hiked to $10) have failed to keep pace with inflation -- but unless you're in executive management, most workers have seen shrinking pay days despite record productivity and record corporate profits. The problem is magnified for bottom feeder jobs. </p><p></p><p>Inflation is difficult to measure, and no metric is perfect, but the government CPI is a fair standard. You need to remember that the median household income in the USA floats around $40K, with workers contributing $4300 toward their health insurance premiums, effectively reducing income to less than $36K. Millions of families, most without any other assistance, get by with this income, thus things can't be as bad as projected.</p><p></p><p>Take food as an example. When people go to the grocery store, they don't buy the same things that they would've 20 years ago. For example, 20 years ago "tv dinners" were limited in quantity and total jokes. Today, a diverse selection occupies large real estate & is a staple in many people's freezers. We've transitioned away from cooking from scratch toward convenience. Your local grocery store also stocks a much larger selection of "exotic" produce, meats & seafood than it did 20 (and even 10) years ago, in addition to a more upscale selection of organic, specialty and designer foods (such as Artisan breads). Ultimately, these things cost more. Private label (store brand) goods also constitute a large percentage of sales vs. virtually zero 20 years ago, which has lead to price increases on national brands. We've also seen a rise in discount & convenience stores - the latter of which sells goods at a much higher price. <strong>Ultimately, Americans are spending about the same at the grocery store as they were 10 years ago (no adjustments - just pure dollars) on higher volume; the percentage of income spent on food has dropped as well.</strong> So while the government is saying food is increasing up to 2-4% a year, sales figures tell otherwise.</p><p></p><p>Sticking with food, another complexity of inflation is dining out. Without question, the cost of dining out has increased over the past 10 years, but how do you measure such trends? Red Lobster, for example, hiked most of its prices this year but launched a comprehensive campaign in which coupons were readily distributed in circulars, the internet, and even at the restaurant, ultimately guessing that at least half of every check would be have some type of coupon redeemed with it. These trends exist elsewhere in retail, in which Kohl's sells a $36 pair of jeans for $70, with ongoing sales dropping the price to -- $36. Of course, some people will pay more, offsetting those who paid less. JCPenney attempted to move away from this model and failed miserably. Currently, our market is heavily promotional -- how do you measure this?</p><p></p><p>I could go on, but I won't.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Several drivers I work with have 15, 20, 30 acres and drive 90-minutes to 2-hours (each way) to work every day. In much of the country, sometimes with sacrifices, it's doable.</p><p></p><p>But housing was rightfully removed from inflation indexes since housing prices - since WWII - haven't really followed inflation. For example, if you live in Los Angeles, over the past 30 years you would've been far better off renting a house & investing the difference in payments -- you would've come out way ahead vs. home ownership. It's probably still true in most areas of LA, although the bargain housing market coupled with low interest rates will yield some exceptions. </p><p></p><p>Rent figures are much more indictive of a market.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Bagels, post: 1128584, member: 43436"] I'm going to disagree with much of your analysis. No disagreement that PT wages (even if the starting wage is hiked to $10) have failed to keep pace with inflation -- but unless you're in executive management, most workers have seen shrinking pay days despite record productivity and record corporate profits. The problem is magnified for bottom feeder jobs. Inflation is difficult to measure, and no metric is perfect, but the government CPI is a fair standard. You need to remember that the median household income in the USA floats around $40K, with workers contributing $4300 toward their health insurance premiums, effectively reducing income to less than $36K. Millions of families, most without any other assistance, get by with this income, thus things can't be as bad as projected. Take food as an example. When people go to the grocery store, they don't buy the same things that they would've 20 years ago. For example, 20 years ago "tv dinners" were limited in quantity and total jokes. Today, a diverse selection occupies large real estate & is a staple in many people's freezers. We've transitioned away from cooking from scratch toward convenience. Your local grocery store also stocks a much larger selection of "exotic" produce, meats & seafood than it did 20 (and even 10) years ago, in addition to a more upscale selection of organic, specialty and designer foods (such as Artisan breads). Ultimately, these things cost more. Private label (store brand) goods also constitute a large percentage of sales vs. virtually zero 20 years ago, which has lead to price increases on national brands. We've also seen a rise in discount & convenience stores - the latter of which sells goods at a much higher price. [B]Ultimately, Americans are spending about the same at the grocery store as they were 10 years ago (no adjustments - just pure dollars) on higher volume; the percentage of income spent on food has dropped as well.[/B] So while the government is saying food is increasing up to 2-4% a year, sales figures tell otherwise. Sticking with food, another complexity of inflation is dining out. Without question, the cost of dining out has increased over the past 10 years, but how do you measure such trends? Red Lobster, for example, hiked most of its prices this year but launched a comprehensive campaign in which coupons were readily distributed in circulars, the internet, and even at the restaurant, ultimately guessing that at least half of every check would be have some type of coupon redeemed with it. These trends exist elsewhere in retail, in which Kohl's sells a $36 pair of jeans for $70, with ongoing sales dropping the price to -- $36. Of course, some people will pay more, offsetting those who paid less. JCPenney attempted to move away from this model and failed miserably. Currently, our market is heavily promotional -- how do you measure this? I could go on, but I won't. Several drivers I work with have 15, 20, 30 acres and drive 90-minutes to 2-hours (each way) to work every day. In much of the country, sometimes with sacrifices, it's doable. But housing was rightfully removed from inflation indexes since housing prices - since WWII - haven't really followed inflation. For example, if you live in Los Angeles, over the past 30 years you would've been far better off renting a house & investing the difference in payments -- you would've come out way ahead vs. home ownership. It's probably still true in most areas of LA, although the bargain housing market coupled with low interest rates will yield some exceptions. Rent figures are much more indictive of a market. [/QUOTE]
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