interesting.
I'd never thought about what managers could make.
Like has been said, running a million dollar business is running a million dollar business.
There is a fast food restaurant near where I work that I occassionally run to for something for lunch. I won't mention their name either, but I hear they make good Frostys.
Who ever the manager of this place is, he is amazing. If it isn't lunch hour, you can literally drive through the place without stopping your car for any longer than to order the dollar bacon cheeseburger, a pause to hand someone your money, and then you can actually glide past the pick up window and grab your food since it will be already hanging out the window. Even in the peak lunch hour the cars creep thourgh the drive through amazingly fast, and you never think "what the hell is going on up there". Seriously, I don't think you stop for more than 20 seconds at a time before you move up again.
I've gone in the place, and it's like watching a ballet. Each person is moving along, everyone keeping up a good clip, but not madly rushing about. Everyone is with the "please" and "thank you's" and it's not forced. The manager is smiling and friendly in a natural way, doesn't get on anyones case, but is constantly moving from here to there, picking up slack for 10 seconds here, 5 seconds there, 20 seconds somewhere else. It's not noisy or frantic, but they just make it happen. I've never gotten an incorrect order.
This guy could be managing an air traffic control central, he's that good. I'll bet he makes some pretty good bucks.
I wish the same, the best for your dtr and son-in-law.
Thanks, Chai. My daughter says her toughest chore is keeping reliable staff. She's located in an area in which the kids are affluent. They don't need the work.
oh I can believe it. staffing is always an issue.
A former BF managed a movie theater in the ritzy part of Boca Raton, and SOME of those kids acted like they were doing someone a favor coming to work.
They phoned us from Colorado. They bought a house.
Edgar--
I hope they were able to take advantage of the current mess in the housing market.
I don't know any details. They will be here in less than an hour. Next Monday, she will be flown to San Diego for a week of training. Shortly after that, they will be leaving us.
Related Story:
HELENA, Mont. - The owner of a fast food joint in Montana's booming oil patch found himself outsourcing the drive-thru window to a Texas telemarketing firm, not because it's cheaper but because he can't find workers.
Record low unemployment across parts of the West has created tough working conditions for business owners, who in places are being forced to boost wages or be creative to fill their jobs.
John Francis, who owns the McDonald's in Sidney, Mont., said he tried advertising in the local newspaper and even offered up to $10 an hour to compete with higher-paying oil field jobs. Yet the only calls were from other business owners upset they would have to raise wages, too. Of course, Francis' current employees also wanted a pay hike.
"I don't know what the answer is," Francis said. "There's just nobody around that wants to work."
Unemployment rates have been as low as 2 percent this year in places like Montana, and nearly as low in neighboring states. Economists cite such factors as an aging work force and booming tourism economies for the tight labor market.
For places like Montana, it has been a steady climb in the nearly two decades since the timber and mining industry recession. The state approached double-digit unemployment levels in the 1980s and began the slow crawl back in the early 1990s.
"This is actually the biggest economic story of our time, and we don't quite grasp it because it is 15 years in the making," said economist Larry Swanson, director of the O'Connor Center for the Rocky Mountain West at the University of Montana.
The U.S. Department of Labor reports the mountain West region ?- covering eight states along the Rocky Mountains ?- has the lowest overall unemployment rate in the nation. The region hit an all-time low of 3.4 percent in May.
The effects are everywhere. Logging equipment in Idaho sits idle as companies have a tough time finding workers. A shortage of lifeguards has forced Helena to shorten hours at children-only pools. A local paper in Jackson, Wyo., has page after page of help wanted ads.
In Jackson Hole, the Four Seasons Resort still had openings in late July. The problem has created longer hours and tougher working conditions for current employees.
For years, the resort has imported dozens of workers from Eastern Europe who often come as much for the summer recreation opportunity as the money. This year, however, that wasn't enough and so for the first time the resort also sent recruiters to a high school job fair, said spokeswoman Greer Terry. It only helped a little.
"It's been a struggle finding employees this summer," Terry said.
Economists say there are a number of reasons why parts of the West are feeling the labor pinch.
Established baby boomers, including retirees, have been moving into Montana for the mountain views and recreation, bringing with them money for new homes that fuel construction job growth, said Swanson.
Along the way, younger people have moved away searching for bigger paychecks as the state's wages still lag behind other areas and are slowly increasing overall. Now, the aging work force is unable to expand to meet the demands of the job market, Swanson said.
He said the problem is compounded by the fact that employers, accustomed to paying relatively low wages, have been slow to increase salaries. Montana wages have historically been among the lowest in the country, and still rank near the bottom. The silver lining for workers is that wages are now growing at the third-fastest rate among U.S. states.
Now, workers with more options in some places are unwilling to take $12-an-hour jobs.
The problem could get worse as more baby boomers retire, Swanson said. By 2030, Montana and Wyoming are predicted to have among the oldest populations in the U.S., with about 26 percent of residents 65 and older, Swanson said. That compares to 19.7 percent predicted nationally.
"We thought the labor force crunch wouldn't come until 2012, but it's already arrived in a lot of these fast-growth areas," Swanson said. As a result, "you'll find older workers working longer, people will sort of linger in the work force. The employers will make it worth their time to."
CONTINUED: ?'The squeeze is on' (Search MSNBC for that)
They gave their going away party on Saturday. Early Wednesday morning, they will be gone. They've already returned my Harry Potter books, the video camera, and given us the food out of the refrigerator (had pastrami tonight for the first time in years). Already they have offered to pay our way for a Christmas visit. I guess we could bear the cold up there for a few days.
Edgar--
Your chicks leave the nest with style--with brio!
Good for them--and for you.
It wasn't as easy for her to leave as she thought. By the time we said our good-byes to the kids and her husband, she was already bawling. I got a little misty, myself. They will be gone by the time the sun gets up.
Edgar--
Start counting the days until Christmas....
