For labor, it's a different day

Labor Day celebrates the efforts of our nation’s collective work force, which by many accounts is working harder than ever to support itself. There was an interesting story in the New York Times this past week, which did a good job of explaining the state of employment in the post-recession economy. Many people are still unemployed, but the recession led to under-employment, too (situations where people are working in a job that is beneath their level of skill, experience or training). That means in addition to multiple-income households, you might also find yourself serving multiple-income people; folks who’ve had to juggle two or three lower-paying jobs to make ends meet. Click here to read the NY Times story.

Implications: It’s important to remember that the labor force is made up of consumers, many of whom are working harder than ever for the money they spend. A company is wise to respect the effort their customers put forth to generate the money they will spend, as well as the time-pressures created by multiple income households… and even people who hold multiple jobs.

Can your product or service ease the burden of work, lead to time savings, or simply make life easier? Have you considered your company’s value proposition in the context of today’s consumer/worker? Can your offering be thought of as the well-deserved (and perhaps overdue) reward that hard working people have earned? The businesses who reflect on those kinds of questions will prosper… even in a strained economy.

It is a different day for labor. And its force is more likely to respond to companies who respect that fact.

Mike Anderson