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Not the Great Resignation But the Great Seppuku

The Great Resignation is a misnomer.  People refer to the record number of Americans voluntarily leaving their jobs as the Great Resignation, but it is actually the Great Seppuku!  Where Seppuku, sometimes referred to as Harakiri, is a form of Japanese ritual suicide by disembowelment. Seppuku was used voluntarily by samurai to die with honor rather than fall into the hands of their enemies, as a form of capital punishment for samurai who had committed serious offenses, or performed because they had brought shame to themselves. A kaishakunin is a person appointed to behead an individual who has performed seppuku. In this analogy, the US government acts as the kaishkunin.

In the US, the industries with the highest turnover rates include staffing companies at 352% and hotels at around 300%, largely as a result of temporary staff.  Within the technology sector, software has the highest turnover rate at 22.4%. The sector with the lowest turnover rate is Government, at 1.5%. Of course, we all know why.

However; Ian Cook at Harvard Review, says the voluntary resignations are in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the American government refusing to provide necessary worker protection, and wage stagnation despite rising costs of living. Some economists say the Great Resignation is a general strike while discussing considering the strike wave in October 

While over at CNBC the Great Resignation is attributed “to a jobs market in which people leaving their positions is driven more by temporary Covid concerns than a general strike.  And NPR says that “As pandemic life recedes in the U.S., people are leaving their jobs in search of more money, more flexibility and more happiness” 

But studies show happiness is not a destination, but a choice. Its an attitude. “Happy people know that  happiness is a choice. They know it is not a reaction to present circumstances. Instead, happiness is an available decision despite them. They have removed the thinking that waits for everything to be perfect before joy in life is experienced.”

While Forbes’ Jack Kelly says “The Great Resignation is a sort of workers’ revolution and uprising against bad bosses and tone-deaf companies that refuse to pay well and take advantage of their staff. Millions of workers voted with their feet”. On the other hand; strikes are called for a number of reasons, but mainly as an economic strike meant to improve wages and benefits to improve working conditions.  Those voluntarily leaving the workforce do not get better wages, unless they go back to the workforce with a promotion

But we know the US Education System is in desperate need of a paradigm change. Most high school students are not prepared for college.  According to Sarah Butrymowicz, The Hechinger Report:  “Most schools place students in what are called remedial courses in math or English before they can move on to a full load of college-level, credit-bearing courses – a process that is a financial drain on not only students, but also colleges and taxpayers, costing up to an estimated $7 billion a year.”

 Instead, colleges and universities do the job high schools are supposed to do.  A viable option for these students in trade school.  Trade schools have a more streamlined approach to learning and provide students with a specialized skill set rather than focusing on general education that students care little about. Trade school training takes less time to complete, require little critical thinking & communication skills, it is usually  hands-on and a lot more cost-effective

I say the Great Seppuku is a government-created crisis partly attributed to its gross mismanagement of the response to COVID.  Then there is the liberal dispensation of unemployment benefits and raising the minimum wage.  A person can go to work to a certain McDonald’s and get paid $20.00 / hour with little to no formal education, rivaling the salary commanded by a liberal arts college graduate.

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