Wage hikes show desperation of job market

by Brandon Mayer

The current labour shortage affecting most of the country is causing many employers to raise their starting wages in desperation, making this an excellent time for prospective workers to go job hunting. Some large companies have been vocal in recent years about potential negative effects from minimum wage increases, though even massive, time-tested corporations are starting to raise their starting wages above minimum wage to recruit and retain staff.

Locally, the new Wendys location and existing McDonalds location in Kemptville are both offering above minimum wage to start, even for non-supervisors. Roadside electronic signage which was originally installed to advertise menu items now often flashes with bold messages of “now hiring”. At one chain restaurant location, there was a sign offering an upcoming “hiring day” with interviews given on the spot.

To the east, the Walmart warehouse in the city of Cornwall is advertising not only a starting wage of $18.90 per hour for new labourers, but also a $3,000 signing bonus.

What do these wage hikes mean for employers, employees, and the public? Paying out higher wages will undoubtedly affect different companies’ finances differently. From a learning perspective, many corporate decision makers may come to place more value on their employees as a result of the current competition for employees in the market. For employees, wage increases can mean nothing but good news, not only because it means they make more money, but also because it represents a certain desperation for employees which is bound to motivate employers to make other positive changes to the workplace climate as well.

While the increase in worker wages is becoming far more pervasive lately, this is not a new reality. In March of this year, a CBC report predicted that wages would skyrocket in 2022 as a result of the labour shortage. “In this job market, if you're not getting a raise, it's time to change jobs because chances are it will pay more,” reads a line from that report.

functionality, no issues, but I just plain hate it. The rest of my remotes are now on close guard, because I have come to accept that it won’t be long before remotes simply no longer exist. There is something about using a simple device from my childhood that brings an unmatched feeling of nostalgia, and you’re darn right I’m going to hold onto it for as long as I can.

Despite my feelings about TV remotes, there is something that matters to me even more. If I had to pick just one nostalgic thing from my life to be frozen in time forever, it would be print newspapers. With National Newspaper Week approaching next month, I have been thinking more and more about how much newspapers actually mean to me. The thought of newspapers takes me back to childhood, sitting in my grandfather’s farmhouse living room, woodstove blazing in the dead of winter, flipping through a copy of the Cornwall Seaway News. I looked forward to reading the newspaper every week because of the anticipation – there was a world of possibilities for what content would be in this week’s issue, and it was impossible to know what I was in for until I opened it up. I think it is for this same reason that I love getting the mail from the Post Office, a daily habit for which my wife thinks I’m crazy, since barely anything comes anymore. I will always love the anticipation of finding out what is in the box, and I am grateful for the occasional pleasant surprise.

In my adult years, the Times has been a source of that same enjoyment that I experienced in childhood. Granted that I write a fair amount of the content in it now, I still set it aside after getting it in the mail each week, and (eventually) flip through it with a cup of coffee. It is very difficult to explain what nostalgia feels like, but in the case of reading the newspaper, it symbolizes for me not only a happy childhood memory, but also the simple fact that my week has gone well, as

I have time for a moment of peaceful recreation.

Arguments can be made all day long about news media shifting to online platforms as a sign of the future. But we can’t forget that print newspapers have the distinction of being accessible to all, and have a pervasive reach that simply doesn’t occur with internet news. One other problem with internet news, particularly on social media, is the speculation and outright nasty exchanges that often overshadow the facts. Of course, news cannot be reported as quickly in print, but dare I say that this is like comparing a historic muscle car to an electric car. Sure, one may be faster and more modern than the other, but it is a mistake to equate these points as the only indicators of quality and value. Staring at a smartphone screen and being fed low quality news instantly simply doesn’t compare to settling in a comfortable chair at the end of a tough work week and opening up a good old fashioned newspaper. With internet news,