re: A main reason for unemployment is that people's bad choices have caught up with them

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Folks out here in their 30's and 40's with no high school diploma complaining about not finding a job that pays a decent wage. I'm not even going to touch on the criminal background factor because that speaks for itself.

Their options are limited because of their own actions and the jobs that they may get considered for are not good enough (from their deluded perspective).

"That's all y'all pay?"...."Who wants to work for that?"

There are plenty of available jobs out here. People don't want to take what is out there...and that's on them.

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You make strong points. But I think we should look at the problem from both perspectives.

Granted. People with no educational background shouldn't be complaining about lack of jobs. The problem is "are you sure these people have no higher education or are you just assuming they dont because it doesnt fit the narrative?"

Plenty of people have college/vocational degrees and have trouble finding employment. The market is flooded with skilled people and their are always winners and losers in those cases.

As for those who are truly uneducated (ie no postsecondary education of any form). Perhaps they may have grown up during a time where they believe they would just do what their parents did. But economics change overtime and many rural and urban communities have shifted from a market economy to a service economy. Many people than this board and those of similar thought dont want to admit that.

As for Mexican and other immigrants, we shouldn't confuse good work ethic for bad business practices. Specifically, "do you like latino immigrants because they are hard workers or because they are willing to do the labor for lower wages than what the federal government requires".

I understand business want to make money. But dont hide behind "work ethic" to prevent just admitting "we want cheaper labor". Nobody is being "entitled" because they want an honest wage that they can pay Bill's with. Do you have bad apples that always want to spend/earn WAAAY more than what their worth. Sure, and unfortunately they know how to game the system. But that doesn't apply to most people.

If you truly value migrant workers, you should support an effective immigration process system and pay them minimum wage at least.

Employers do not owe people jobs, and they have every right to seek out the lowest labor costs they can. They must take the bad with the good or adjust till they are at an agreeable median.

And you are right that economics change, and this can leave previously employed individuals in a lurch. In this case, the only solution is for the newly unemployed to move on to a location with better options. That is usually not an easy option, but it has been done for many hundreds of years by people in far worse circumstances and is far better (and more realistic) than expecting businesses to pick up the slack.

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I get that most people can hold it together for 10 weeks, but there are many who can't go to school, work a job that pays and take on an unpaid internship. We long ago gave up unpaid internships and the pool of qualified applicants increased greatly.

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I agree, I wouldn't have been able to do it. I allow them great leeway during this training, I understand the hardship. BUT, the school requires it be unpaid, I'd at least give them $10/hour if it were up to me.

Those we hire outside the school are paid $12-$15/hour through training and then re-evaluated at 3 and 6 months and given raises accordingly, usually at the 6 month mark.