> What kind of wages are being offered? What wages can you afford?
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> I don't employ any others. Why, just never worked out that well making the payroll (and dealing with all the taxes). Don't like being a slave to the employees and government. Maybe if the work could be billed out at a high enough rate, but many are just giving it away and paying minimum wage.
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> It seems to be a common attitude these days that an employer is some sort of social organization to provide jobs and benefits to the masses. Good luck with that, sooner than later the money (taxes) will run out. The government is broke but with the ability to print money has been able to continue and pay. Most private businesses can't print money or borrow forever.
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> There is plenty of capable folks out there to work, we just don't have a system anymore where business can afford (make a profit) to be able to pay them properly. I hope we turn the corner and return to some sort of productive system but can't really see how that will happen any time soon.
Unfortunately it appears that you have drank from the right wing koolaide with all this talk about unsustainable debt. The world runs on debt (operating capital in your parlance)as a businessman you should know this. No debt (operating capital) no business. Debt is necessary to rung a business or a country. If we can afford two wars we can afford social security, medicare and the post office with money to spare.
> Over the past year it appears to me that finding people to work in the Surveying sector has become harder and harder. When looking for knowledgeable people as a field tech or cad tech is almost impossible. Am I the only one seeing this?
You can't sustain a skilled workforce on cheap wages. You want skilled workers, than you're going to have to pay them.
Kentucky closed the door on an experience only path to licensure. I did the 10 year path and obtained my PLS last year. I started as a rodman and worked my way up, also studied after work and on the weekends. You just have to want it. I have gained respect among our local old timers. I volunteer when I can and attend our local professional surveyor meetings. You have to know your areas of expertise and present yourself as a professional in the coarse of your work. I may not be able to do a least squares adjustment by hand but I can put a boundary on the ground with confidence. We all must present ourselves as professionals and educate the public in order for the perception to change. Do the job correctly and charge a fair price for the liability we assume. If that doesn't work, get a job doing construction layout with a big corporation, be the problem solver and gain respect by being the professional you are.
It's yet to be determined whether we could afford two wars and all the other government giveaways. None of it has been paid for. I don't know whether it's right wing or not but I side with Austrian Economics.
Lots of businesses use debt but it's not easy. If most debt was restricted to self liquidating debt maybe things would be better.
I think if you look at most of the real successful companies you will find few of them carry much debt. I've had debt. Let's just say it's easier to get a loan than pay one off. If I could go back to my twenties with my experience I'd not use debt. I'd take longer to build a much greater business in the long run.
What our country is doing is insane. Every civilization that's gone down this road has collapsed in the end. We've done it on a scale many times bigger than anything before. So we will see how it works out! If a default is possible to get out from under it maybe things will get better. Maybe they can inflate it away but about the same result just a different set of winners and more losers. Pay it all off legitimately, IMPOSSIBLE!! Can the debt be carried forward? Well, they are struggling at 1% interest. What happens if interest returns to 5% or higher say 8%. All the taxes collected wouldn't cover the interest. But who knows, maybe they will just tax all income at 90%. Yeah, can't wait to start a new business under those conditions. But it would be good, I'd be serving my social interest to hire and pay for everything for some employees. I'd be a hero in the eyes of the social-paths running this mess.
Nuts, worked for two companies that to this day operate on zero debt. One is employee owned, the other almost went under in 1978 and changed their business model to a pay as you go for all overhead items. I know that model works, carried 5 crews through 1992 without laying off anybody. As I was one of the crew and was watching other companies lay off or go under, I developed a healthy respect for that attitude.
I came from Career Technical Education where my community college administration cut the Drafting and Design Technology program that had a Land Surveying option. There were only three of such in the entire state of Mississippi at the community college level. A full one third of the places a student could go in our state to get the education route to become a PLS was cut by those who are pushing pre-4-year degree academic programs. We turned out CAD people and Technicians with a 99%+ employment record, but we were seen as not being needed by industry. The odd thing was, the industry people I talked to were not asked what they thought about this. Very few people in academics are standing behind our Career Technical programs, and even the Bachelor's program we had at one of our state universities. And our profession is suffering because of it.
I agree - a skilled workforce is hard to come by. Sometimes new employees are "stolen" from another company, and sometimes you train them, and they are "stolen" from you with an offer of a higher wage. Money speaks, and an offer for higher wages will tempt most, even to an unrelated job.
I have gone solo - bought a GPS base and GNSS rover system today, and I am not looking back. Who is going to follow me when I retire? Who can do what I do? It has taken me 32 years to learn my trade, and I wanted it, like the guy above said. I don't see that kind of drive in a lot of people today. And I don't see educators supporting the surveying profession, nor do we have the "zing" or appeal to attract many new recruits into our profession. Probably, mentorship may be one way we can keep our profession going. Finding the right candidate with enough "stick 'em" will be tough.