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Today's folks are doing two to three times the amount of work for half the pay. I've noticed this disturbing trend really emerging heavily over the last 3 years. Seems like multiple positions are being conjoined into one single position and this trend isn't stopping. Just look at fast food drive thru windows. I can't remember the last time now I saw both windows open with a dedicated cashier at one and food preparer at the next. It's all just one person taking the money and getting you the food at one window.
But that's just one example, it's really happening everywhere. My last contract position I had to work as a Lead Designer and Producer. Almost all my wife's jobs have been dual or triple type. In the role she is in now she is a Receptionist, Social Media Manager, and Marketing Associate. I have an artist friend who finally got hired for a position doing UI design AND Audio Design. I even see dual type positions in the ads all the time. Saw a Parking Garage Attendant/Janitor a while back. Like I really want the person doing my money transactions handling the trash at the same time. Also saw a Computer Programmer / Artist position as well in my area. Hell, I see lots of positions like this.
How long will this horrible trend continue? People have fell victim to it due to high unemployment and doing what you need to do to get by, but at this rate, where will businesses draw the line? How long before companies are combining 4, even 5 jobs into a single position?
I would actually like that because I have broad educational background and am qualified to work on just about every project that the companies in my industry win. I like variety.
More so, companies pigeonhole you into doing one thing and when that work is in, they slave you over it. And once that work is done, sayonara. If they need someone to inspect Type A widgets and your experience is in Type B widgets, they'll lay you off and hire someone from outside who has 2 years inspecting Type A widgets.
No other company will hire you unless you have experience doing that one thing for years either.
Why would employers go back to having one person do one job, especially since they now have to provide health insurance (or many of them have to, not necessarily all)? They think it saves money because they have to payroll fewer people. The only thing that would change that is if they start seeing obvious ways where it hurts their business, particularly financially.
I do two jobs in one at work, and it wasn't a position or positions I was initially hired into or walked into the place thinking I'd be doing (that's another thing employers do nowadays--drastically alter your job description/have you doing tons of things not in your job description). They just threw me on what they wanted me to do. Prior to that, they had me doing some of everything, and many of my coworkers still do that. My employer knows my job really is for two people more days than not (sometimes it's not even for one person). Some days, I get so much work that I can't finish it all without working overtime (which I have told my employer I'm not going to do). So what do they do when I'm swamped? They pull another worker whose actual job is totally different from mine and have them "help" me--they don't go out and hire another person. They're not going to. So other people end up doing multiple jobs in one in trying to help me do a job that is for two people.
On top of it, they were constantly trying to add more and more to what I do. I told them in a professional manner that enough is enough, and now they've stopped. I'm not sure that'd work for everyone, but I got lucky and ended up with a new supervisor in my area who is fair and reasonable (plus, I walked him through my job one day, which let him see firsthand I do a ton of crap at work). For a lot of people, there's probably no way to get their employer to stop giving them 2 or 3 people's worth of work.
when I came to the US 15yrs ago, only 1/5th of my potential (previous experience) was being tapped which was really weird. they actually told me not to touch or help on other things. I'm glad, after years of foreigners coming in, cultures merging, efficiency evaluations and merging roles I'm finally more productive now relying on less people again
The old work place idiom of do more with less has been a part of business since the credit crunch happened in 08/9.
It precedes the credit crunch. In the 1700's the people who used to pick the cotton used to be different than the people who used to remove the seeds. With the availability of the cotton gin that did both jobs, only one person was needed to operate the gin. That one position was really the two positions of picking cotton and removing the seeds.
This type of process innovation has occurred all over the workplace. Nowadays, computer programmers type up their own programs. Previously, a computer programmer wrote programs by hand and an operator punched them into cards. The multiple positions are handled by one person now.
Technology will continue to add efficiency and merge roles.
I'm seeing this and often the jobs aren't really connected. A local company was hiring a marketing director with a forklift certification and another was hiring an administrative assistant with a mechanic background.
I'm seeing this and often the jobs aren't really connected. A local company was hiring a marketing director with a forklift certification and another was hiring an administrative assistant with a mechanic background.
Maybe they were marketing forklift training material?
Administrative assistants with a background in the field in which they practice is desired. It's helpful to know about the industry in which they are assisting in.
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