Thursday, March 29, 2007

Journal's Heidi Walters call Humboldt's workers unworthy?

Interesting perspective by Ms. Walters: North Coast Journal March 29, 2007 : ON THE COVER : TITLE I am not so sure I agree with the premise that there are tons of good paying jobs around Humboldt County. I see Evergreen as an anomaly. The average worker at the pulp mill make well over $40,000 a year compared to the around $25,000 by the average Humboldt worker.

It seems that workers are more fussy now than before. I seem to see more of the "that's not my job" mentality. I have talked to others who do not want to work shift work in any form. There has to be some give and take to make decent wages. Young workers seem more and more to feel entitlement to working conditions they have not earned through seniority.

Maybe I agree with Heidi more than I realize.

20 comments:

Joel Mielke said...

Ms. Walters' piece will resonate with most Humboldt County business owners. I'm not sure that she was saying that there are so many great jobs out there, but she was indicating that businesses are short-handed and have trouble finding suitable help.

Anonymous said...

The weird thing is that there are so many young people out there that complain about the lack of jobs and wages around here. This article pretty much argues that.

Anonymous said...

I have the distinct perspective of both sides of this issue. I am a former local business owner, who always struggled to get and keep good employees, and I am now working a job that pays me surprising little for what I do. I have lots of education and experience in several high profile fields. I just can't afford to take a low paying job and work my way up. I've been out of college for 10 years and have a family to support.
Frankly I intend to relocate my family soon and I know there are a lot of 30-somethings in the same boat.

Anonymous said...

Let's face it, the Journal is not the paper it was just 5 years ago. Things have gone way downhill. Hank is either oblivious to or attempting to cover up the NCJ's complacency and condescension. Just look at his smarmy little comments on the blogs, as though his word is the final end all and be all of Humboldt politics.

Hank Sims said...

Hey Richard: Can we run your post as a letter to the editor?

Anonymous said...

Hi Richard -- I second Hank's request.
C.P. Ranger, you put that well.

Heidi Walters

Anonymous said...

The typical American is fat and lazy, and think the world owes them a living for doing nothing. Hank Sims rambles on and on without saying much of anything and if he was a public speaker instead of a writer, I just know he would be in love with the sound of his own voice.

Anonymous said...

Gee, Anonymous, you could add, "and they like to fixate blame for all of their problems on others."

Anonymous said...

Heidi complements CP Ranger as if he wasn't a co-worker in the Journal, the smarmy Joel Mielke who just loves to trash all the other papers he doesn't work for. With Hank chiming in, it's like a three-way jerk of Journal jerks, who needs a blog for that when they have the office water cooler to talk shit around?

samoasoftball said...

Hank: Go ahead and reprint for Journal LTE. Heidi's article has been a hot subject at Evergreen. Some people were upset for some reason about my blog comments about work. Grumblings about this risking others overtime at the plant, and finger pointing that I could turn down alot of the overtime.

Let me publically state here and now, I would gladly pass up on all future overtime if full time replacements were hired to take the workload off of me and others in my department and in the plant. One of the workers on day shift has worked 40 straight days!

And I am nowhere near the leading worker hours wise in my department. Out of the 12 workers in the Chip Dump, there are more than a few who have worked more hours than I. This week I will most likely log around 70 hours. No where near the most. (My relief is working 84)

I have heard that Evergreen is hiring 6 new employees in the next week. That should help in our department. But we have many people ready for retirement in the next few years. I hope we can keep up with the replacement of workers.

Anonymous said...

Today's youth does have that sense of entitlement. They expect to start out close to the top because they are so smart and know everything. This attitude affects a lot of good kids too.

Anonymous said...

Our employer hired a shift worker who quit after two days when he found out he didn't get summers off. Another quit, a while back, when she only wanted to work four hours per day. Both graduates of HSU.

Anonymous said...

There isn’t as much of an unemployment problem as there is an unemployability problem.

Anonymous said...

Combine a steady decline in earnings for workers with a sense of entitlement in young job seekers and you've got problems.

Anonymous said...

None of you obviously have had to find work in this county recently... And yes, not everyones made out to work in a pulp mill. So aside from that, where are all the jobs???

Anonymous said...

Quit whining and get off your ass. I am self-employed. If the job you want doesn't exist in Humboldt County, then make your own job or move to a more populated area. I started up my own business because I like to set my own hours and I don't like other people telling me what to do.

Anonymous said...

COOS BAY - Sen. Joanne Verger announced Friday the U.S.-based operating division of A.P. Moller-Maersk, the largest container ship company in the world - with an annual revenue double that of Nike - has Coos Bay's North Spit on its short list for a new container terminal.

How short is the list?

Coos Bay is one of three ports in the running for selection.

Two rival sites, one located in British Columbia, the other in Mexico, also want the business.


Maersk will decide in November which location it has chosen, Verger said. If Coos Bay is selected, it could mean up to 300 jobs for longshoremen, as well as the potential to attract other economic interests.

Anonymous said...

Sorry but people with brains move the fuck out of this shithole county. Most self employment jobs are frankly pretty unrewarding careers. The jobs availiable in Humboldt county dont seem very rewarding either. And Im not talking money. Yes, for some people having a job with a bigger purpose is what motivates them, not just getting by for the month. Richard has raised smart kids and they knew better than to stay here.

Anonymous said...

It is all in the eye of the beholder. Seems like Humoldt is an awesome place to live for me. I'm self employed and it is very rewarding.

BTW - I left home when I got out of school too.

ammo-usaf said...

Hey Richard, get me in touch with someone from human resources there. I'm getting out of the Air Force pretty soon (drug free and ready to work). Got a contact I can write? I checked out the pulp mill site and there's no human resource page. I'd rather work there than hauling around explosives in Iraq for $2000 per month. Seriously, if you could get me in contact with someone I'd be glad to be a replacement :)