What price flexibility?
An elastic workforce can snap back.
Casual jobs are replacing full-time careers.
This is economically rational – especially in tricky times.
But casual labour has disadvantages too.
It may even kill platypuses.
Mail merge
When I got a card from my postie (mail delivery officer) I dismissed it as some boring union drama.
Then I saw a newspaper article about the casualisation of postal work.
This seemed sad, but I figured it was the way of the world (of which our postal service was streets ahead).
Then a second postie card came.
It listed the risks of going casual and asked me to write a letter if I agreed.
I did, so I did.
The move went ahead anyway and my regular postie vanished.
You’ve not mail!
Almost immediately, his postcard prophecies started coming true:
- Some letters addressed to me went to other people (who forwarded them).
- Other people’s letters came to me (so I returned the favour).
- Mail I was expecting turned up late.
I complained twice and things improved, but it wasn’t the same.
I missed my old postie, who knew me so well he could hand me my mail far from home.
Our stretched community spirit felt even thinner on the ground.
Unlike the rubber (elastic) bands.
Letter drop
Suddenly these red bands were everywhere. I couldn’t walk 50 paces without spotting one (the photo shows a handful of my growing collection).
I’d seen these bands holding groups of mail together.
My old postie always recycled his. I suspect the new casual posties may be flinging theirs to the four winds as they drop their bundles.
And when it rains, they hit the drains.
Abandoned
I’d heard that fauna and rubber bands don’t mix.
I’ve since read several articles about platypuses ingesting or swimming through them, with fatal consequences.
Last week, in my post office, I heard a heated exchange between a frustrated postmaster and a postie who evinced zero knowledge of or care for the residents of his round.
It all felt very wrong.
I see it’s a long bow to say casual posties kill critters.
But the rubber band explosion in my suburb dates from casualisation.
Are your posties casual?
Are your casuals postal?
Are their bands on the run?
This way up
As a full-time human resources manager, I used to sack people.
As a casual writer, I now pick rubber bands off the streets.
I may be crazy, but let’s check the rationalist record:
- Service (gas) station attendants.
- Tram conductors.
- Station masters.
- Bank tellers.
- Tea ladies.
Maybe platypuses aren’t the only vulnerable species.
Business is business. And running full-time staff can be a crippling pain in the bum.
But maybe we need to think outside the drop box.
When it comes to labour, how flexible are you?
Paul Hassing , Founder & Senior Writer, The Feisty Empire
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Wonderful, engaging, witty post this morning Paul. There’s plenty of evidence to show that high service (and by extension high taxing) societies are happiest of all. I think the Scandinavians do it best; although, of course, they have hot tubs, so we’re not comparing apple schnapps with apple schnapps.
If business is just about making money, then we’re all screwed, as bottom-line profit excludes social and environmental capital.
Maybe if the globe warms and oceans rise, we could train the platypi to swim down your street delivering mail?
Thanks for the post!
Thanks for your heart-warming reaction, Ad. As I know you’re a caring, careful world citizen, I really appreciate your view.
Folks sure seemed pretty content when I was in Finland. State-run central heating in every home (albeit nuclear powered).
If our American friends can train dolphins to spot naval mines, we can surely serve up post-apocalyptic platypi.
We could even exercise our alliance and send them on combined suicide missions down that pesky oil well!
Great post Paul. I wish I had the answers to this one, but I’m drawing a blank. At least you were drawing a bow.
Don’t you worry about that, Stephen. You more than pull your weight on tricky techie issues we encounter here. Speaking of which, how come we can’t see your smiling face?
Hi Paul,
Regarding the postie, I would not have a clue but I think they may be casuals as I have seen a few different ones.
From what I have read I think flexibility will only increase as well as flexibility of where you work. The other factor is perhaps more people are wanting flexibility in their work hours. Not totally sure on this one so someone else may be able to let us know.
Out of interest what do you actually do with your rubber bands? Perhaps you can sell them back to the post office.
Hi, Susan. It is a vexed issue to be sure. A full-time role would fry my brain at this stage of my life, so I’m dicing with a very sharp double-edged sword here.
In a push to declutter my home, I’m going nuts on ebay. The rubber bands are very handy for securing awkward packages in recycled bubblewrap.
I also flick them at Fonnie during particularly gripping moments on MasterChef.
She hates it.
Ah staff – one of our biggest challenges as small business owners I reckon. Way back when I had both a fledgling business and progeny, both requiring a lot of attention, I hired first a nanny and then a junior to help out.
At times I’d look at what was coming in vs. what was going out in wages and feel like chucking it all in, simplifying and growing my own veges. Other times it gave me a warm glow to know that I was able to give two people a wage and contribute to the economic flow.
I’ve tried having lots of staff, up to 10 at one stage, but I’m back down to me and one other now, plus freelancers as needed. I guess I’m doing my own version of what the post office did? But this model seems to suit me best, this way I can focus on doing what I love rather than getting side-tracked by HR issues.
And, what is with the rubber bands? One each day ’round my mail, I have quite a collection. I may not have anyone to answer the phones for me but at least I know I shall never have to purchase rubber bands ever again.
Extraordinary, Angela – your experience closely mirrors mine.
I almost hired people, but my HR Horrorfest put me off the idea.
I did as much as I could for my freelancers without actually putting them on the books.
I got up to 5. And am now back to 1. And it feels right. Complexity sure takes the shine of freelancing.
And when you see poor Clive Peeters ripped off to the tune of $20M by a staff member, your desire to employ can be dented.
I’d be interested to know if you (or others) find rubber bands in your street. Maybe we’ll get an app. to track them.
Hi Paul,
This is an interesting post especially when you couple it with the courier post from a couple days ago. As I mentioned in a tweet to you yesterday, the Coles grocery store in my neighbourhood had a big sign posted yesterday saying their courier delivery service had canceled their contract and Coles was no looking at alternative arrangements from home delivery. It made me feel terrible.
Here’s the thing – it’s easy for business to lump couriers, posties, service-station attendants, wait staff, etc. into a “nice to have” feature. Frankly, I think service is a big part of my custom. Maybe that’s my American upbringing but when service is dispensed with, you’re also affecting your customer relations and your future revenues.
I’ve got a big wad of rubber bands in my desk drawer, too. I don’t necessarily think it’s an even trade-off for having a dedicated postie.
Hi Sarah. I didn’t mean for these posts to complement each other, but they sort of do.
That’s quite a coincidence you describe. I forgot about your origins. I may call on you to help me grasp and respect the nuances of our growing US contingent!
Thanks for your comment (and rubber band datum). I’m fascinated by the emerging picture.
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