.....Here's the thing: Early retirement — whether forced by the pandemic or made possible otherwise — is having a huge impact on the labor market. And data show that retiring boomers, far more than "lazy" millennials, are the biggest force behind the labor shortage.
People have left the workforce for myriad reasons in the past two years. But among those who have left and are least likely to return, the vast majority are older Americans who accelerated their retirement.
Last month, there were 3.6 million more Americans who had left the labor force and said they didn't want a job compared with November 2019. A whopping 90% of them were over 55"
WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THAT BUBBA? What was it that Pogo said about seeing the problem and it is US, or something like that? Of course, many of you are too young to even know who Pogo was.
I have to agree with Ed here. If you know of a good double-gun gunsmith who is still active, then just go ahead with a recommendation. If your gunsmith is not taking on new customers, then don't bother. Pretty simple!
Those who think that having an 01 FFL, a business license, and a dedicated commercial shop are essential to quality gunsmithing obviously have not seen the work done by some of the extremely talented non-professionals who have shared work here.
We have some gunsmiths who are retired or nearing retirement. We have some who spend a lot of time posting Liberal dogma on forums rather than working on guns. And we still have new guys entering the trade. As always, the new crop will contain some real talented craftsmen... and some who should never be permitted to work on any gun.
I certainly do not buy the current Liberal Left spin that is blaming the current labor shortage on older people retiring early. From what I personally see, the uncertainties of inflation and supply chain problems are making people more reluctant to retire, and fearful that they might outlive their savings. 45% of people between age 55 and 65 have virtually no retirement savings, and cannot afford to simply quit. My employer has had great difficulty finding enough qualified applicants in the last couple years. I constantly hear stories from management about few applicants, applicants who have very thin resumes, highly exaggerated resumes, or otherwise qualified applicants who simply cannot pass a drug test.
One thing is certain in my mind. If an able-bodied person voluntarily chooses to leave the labor force, they should be ineligible for any Unemployment Compensation, Welfare, or other taxpayer provided government assistance. I worked right through the Covid19 Shut-Down, and thoroughly enjoyed driving to work at 90-95 mph with almost no other traffic on the roads, and cops ignoring speeding violations. We had roughly 2 million people illegally entering this country in 2021, most coming to find work. Those who complain about depressed wages should consider the effect of that.
If this is unsuitable content for this forum, then certainly the post I quoted from is too.
