The staff-free movement
Eliminate. Annihilate. Exterminate. These are the heated (unwoke) words we’re hearing a lot right now, from frustrated worn out employers fed up with their demanding staff. It’s starting to feel like no one wants to be an employer anymore and going staff-free is the hottest emerging trend. While employees gripe about their jobs, little do the know that many employers are actively seeking ways to rid themselves of staff altogether. Whether it’s tweaking their business model to eliminate staff or exploring new businesses there’s definitely “a shift in the continuum” happening.
That “shift in the continuum” comes from a hugely popular 1980’s film and we suspect it’s the eighties driving this movement. Those eighties kids are now the ones doing the stress employing staff. They’re Gen X heavy and their strong work-ethic, self-responsibility and modesty ain’t aligning well with the current business environment.
What’s got their back up?
Being offended seems to be the battle cry of many employees. It’s almost as if it’s their job to be offended. Constantly filtering your words and predicting how employees interpret them is an added pressure no business owner needs.
We know of an employer whose entire staff complained about a new employee spitting prawn shells on the staffroom table (after sucking the meat out using chopsticks). Raising this politely ended with the new employee bringing lawyers in.
The quality and quantity of the available workforce is diminishing. Even in our industry we’re finding the A+ students and school Dux types are no longer choosing accountancy which makes it impossible to find staff of a high enough calibre to employ.
Outrageous staff demands are becoming too much for a generation of employers who were raised working incredibly hard, solving their own problems, doing extra hours for praise (not pay) and taking practical jokes as intended. Can you even ask an apprentice to buy striped paint anymore?
We were shocked to hear of a 25 year old employee claiming he was burnt out and demanding months of paid leave!
And how about our friends healthy young apprentice demanding a car and a pay rise after taking 66 days of “sick leave”.
New Zealand’s generous leave provisions (12-13 public holidays, plus regional ones, 20 days annual leave, 10 days sick leave, family violence leave etc) are a considerable financial drain on businesses as is the ever-increasing minimum wage. It’s not uncommon to see staff earning more than their bosses.
Rigid employment laws are making employers feel powerless and poor. Most employers don’t have the resources to write a health and safety plan for every employees home office, let alone identify home cats as trip hazards.
These are but a few of the drivers forcing kiwi employers to explore ways to run their businesses staff-free. The solutions aren’t new, but the weighting is definitely shifting from less reliance on staff to greater utilisation of contractors, artificial intelligence, technology, overseas outsourcing, or moving to more boutique business models. Some are even selling staff-heavy businesses to invest in passive investments instead. They’re making less money but they’re happier without staff.
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