Rethinking the Workplace and Taking Responsibility for Your Career

Taking ownership of your career.

If you needed more confirmation that the economy is still tough and the job market isn't going to recover overnight, you can take a look at PNC Bank's fall 2011 Economic Outlook Survey. The survey represents the bank's poll of small business owners in an attempt to get some insight on their moods and thoughts about hiring new employees and their concerns for their companies.

The survey showed that the overwhelming majority of small business owners are less than optimistic about their company's future. Almost a fourth of them said that they were actually pessimistic, an increase of 17 percent. In fact, only 18 percent of the business owners surveyed said that they were optimistic about their company's prospect for the next six months. The survey also reported that 35 percent of these small business owners planned to raise their prices at some point in the next six months. I knew it was bad, but I didn't know it was that bad yet.

Only 20 percent of the owners said that they are expecting to hire full-time employees and 14 percent plan to reduce the size of their full-time staff.

As the unemployment rate continues to stay extremely high, many people are blaming the workforce for the problem. One of the things I hear fairly often is that American young adults are entering the workforce with the belief that it owes them something. The thought is that too many people choose to "follow their dreams" rather than think about a career that will give them security and a good income.

Although that might be one cause, the truth is that there just aren't many jobs. Because so many people are out of work or underemployed, they aren't spending the kind of money they may have in previous years. Without people willing to buy their products and services, companies look for ways to slash their bottom lines. Typically, they achieve this by laying off employees and running a leaner business. Then, there are more people who lack the money to buy their stuff and the circle worsens.

However, I think that the whole idea of the "poor company" struggling just to keep from going bankrupt a little far-fetched. Perhaps when you are talking about small businesses, it may be mostly true, but large companies don't have the same excuse. The reason that they aren't hiring is because they have found out that reducing their staff and having two part-time employees do the work of three full-time employees works. It saves them money on salaries because right now, they can hire more skilled employees at a very low rate and if they keep their workforce part-time, they don't have to worry about paying benefits. Not only that, but when employees are hungry and desperate for their paycheck, they are more than willing to go above and beyond in order to keep their jobs.

It's becoming surprisingly common for businesses to hire slightly more part-time employees than they need and give each worker the bare minimum number of hours to keep them from quitting. This tactic makes great sense for the company because if an employee is having performance issues, there's no need to worry over discipline procedures or have to fire them (and worry about unemployment claims). They can just cut back the number of hours the employee's is scheduled until they quit. Of course, the employee schedules vary widely from day to day and week to week so that it would be next to impossible for them to find second jobs that might cause conflicting loyalties.

Most corporations are making a lot of money right now. It is a company's dream right now. They have access to the best and the brightest talent at a fraction of the cost. For example, if an accounting firm needs an executive assistant, they can advertise a job opening for an entry level secretary. With all of the resumes they receive, there is bound to be someone who has experience as an executive assistant. From there, they can hire the overqualified secretary for cheap and give her all of the duties of an executive assistant. Odds are high that the employee won't complain and may actually be grateful for having a job.

In addition, this extended period of economic trouble, many companies have had to rethink the way they do business and the way the company runs. They are finding new, cheaper ways to get the work done. Outsourcing, telecommuting, combining jobs and automating larger parts of the process have become very popular ways for a company to save money and increase profits.

If you think about it, almost every grocery store has a self checkout isle even though the groceries aren't any cheaper if you don't use a cashier.I'm sure you've noticed over the past 5-10 years that more and more companies have started to allow customers to order items or pay their bills online. There is a huge push for things like paperless billing and other streamlined services. In fact, with my cell phone company, if I want to get a regular paper bill mailed to me each month, I have to pay a few dollars surcharge. Similarly, if I call the company's customer service department to make a payment over the phone, I am charged a $10 convenience fee. I don't know who the fee is convenient for, but it certainly isn't me.

For most adults, even though they see the problems, there isn't much that they can do about it. They need a paycheck - it's really that simple. Because of that harsh economic reality, they have to keep quiet and take what the company will give them. Even though they might want to work for a company that provides motivation,feedback, training, benefits and the occasional pizza party, most companies have moved away from that business model several years ago.

Let's face it - That's what capitalism is all about. So, what should we do about it?

If you don't want to be in a position to have to take what you can get, then you have to re-think your attitudes about the workplace and how money is earned. If you look around, you'll see many people who have already done just that. They have started looking at options like freelancing, consulting and even starting their own businesses. Their thought is, "Hey if the companies can outsource work, why not outsource it to me?".

Taking charge of your own career requires taking chances and thinking about business and employment in a whole new way. If you want to be the owner of your career, stay tuned next week for 10 Ways to Take Control of Your Career.

Have you ever been in this type of situation? Have you ever felt stuck in a job? I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments.

By Melissa Kennedy- Melissa is a 9 year blog veteran and a freelance writer for PhillyJobsBlog and Nexxt, along with helping others find the job of their dreams, she enjoys computer geekery, raising a teenager, supporting her local library, writing about herself in the third person and working on her next novel.