Labour shortage

The pundits are suggesting many shops and restaurants will close up in my fair city over the next 12 to 18 months because the owners can't operate without employees. No one will work for anything less than $15 an hour and a lot of folks can't afford to pay twice the minimum wage.
Unfortunately, there are plenty of the jobs that will pay that much for next to no effort.
I was struck personally by this labour shortage this evening. I was craving a half-coffee/half French vanilla cappuccino from Tim Horton's so I cut through drive-thru on my way to Wal-Mart to pick up the usual rations of cleaning supplies and dry goods.
The sign on the drive-thru speaker said 'temporarily closed due to staffing shortage.'

But in order to keep feeding the oil/gas supply/demand system which is exacerbating this labour shortage ... I did not park and get out of my car (sorry, JR ). I drove four blocks to the next Timmy's to get my coffee mix.

 

A sign of the differences between the U.S. and Canada:

In all my life, I've never, NEVER, seen a sign like that on a business. Maybe some places did have a labor shortage and were closed because of it, but I never saw anything this explicit.

 

That's because we have labor shortages and they have laboUr shortages.

And we have a low unemployment rate because millions of people are working for minimum wage and not able to make a decent living in the Bush economy.

 

We also have a housing shortage. Hundreds of people (including families) have moved out to the land of milk and honey but the houses can't be built fast enough.
That and even some of the higher-paying jobs doesn't mean they can afford a home -- with your average three-bedroom home going for about $300K. There is such a thing as 50-year mortgages around here now.

 

The "land of milk and honey" -- Alberta?

 

While living on Long Island, I rode past a Dunkin' Donuts that was closed down. On the boards, somebody spray-painted, "Closed due to high rents and lack of business." Considering the Dunkin' Donuts in question was on a heavily trafficked road, I was shocked.

 

Yup ... and I hear Edmonton is quickly undergoing the same changes.

 

and don't forget Fort McMurray (where?)

 

Never been to Edmonton, but I'm a big Calgary fan ... although the price tag sounds a bit too high.

 

Time for Canada's class war to start. Stock up on cotton balls.

 

If ever the phrase 'armpit of Canada' was necessary, it's when referrig to Fort Mac.