OPINION: Where have we gone wrong? Opinion by News Of The Area - Modern Media - December 15, 2021 DEAR News Of The Area, I HAVE been pondering over the news that we are getting, that all types of businesses (for example restaurants, shops, fruit pickers) cannot find enough staff to do full time or even part time work and we have to rely on overseas folk to do this. I walk along Ocean Pde in the morning and the same people are surfing all morning. Then you look at the skate park any day and it’s full of teenagers. Where have their work ethics gone? Is it far too easy to get by on handouts from Centrelink? I heard someone say kids are just different these days. I disagree, kids are the same. What’s changed is a society with lowered expectations, lack of discipline and an acceptance of disrespect. Give kids boundaries, expectations, rules, limits, rewards and consequences – they will rise to the challenge and exceed your expectations every time. Regards, P.TAYLOR Coffs Harbour. By Tara CAMPBELL
I think more to the point is that our society has become used to passing what is considered menial work to overseas labour forces or those who are grateful or happy to have an “ordinary” job. For many the influence of the “super highway” has given us a false impression of what life in the 4 dimensions actually is. Suddenly jobs that have traditionally been a right of passage are no more. On top of that wages for some of these positions are so low I would imagine prospective job seekers would let them pass. There is work to be done on both sides of the employment scene. Reply
