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The Forum > General Discussion > Cut out the middle man- but at what cost

Cut out the middle man- but at what cost

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We have a growing trend towards 'cutting out the middle man' in almost everything we do.

Online shopping, Ebay, buying directly from the markets, producers etc etc.

Sure, it's great to save money, but what cost is this going to have on our jobs market moving forward.

We already face possible losses in manufacturing, even before we introduce an ETS and, with retail now being errodded by these 'money saving' schemes, where are we headed.

Take retail and manufacturing out of the picture, what's left in the way of creating employment.

Just remember, the next time you 'buy direct' or 'on line', whos job are you placing at risk?
Posted by rehctub, Tuesday, 24 November 2009 6:36:31 AM
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Rehctub this post seems to be out of character for you.

It is almost luddite.

Jobs lost from one area are jobs gains in another area and the improved productivity in the new area means a greater benefit from labor overall (its called “productivity”)..

Those who smashed the spinning jennys and the croppers (who trimmed the top of carpet pile 300 years ago) did not save their jobs.

Machines, operated by one man, move mountains where armies of men moved molehills in the past.

Automation has streamlined welding and CNC factory machines work faster with fewer rejects in metal work factories.

“Just remember, the next time you 'buy direct' or 'on line', whos job are you placing at risk?”

Well, it will not be the one of the bloke who is busy designing websites, a role which was non-existent 20 years ago

Or those who make shredding machines for the paperless office (one prediction which has seen A4 paper sales boom)

Of course, the Kodak factory in Coburg Vic., in an industry which was not invented until 150 years ago closed, unable to stop the progress of digital photography and Ericsons, makers of mobile phones (newer invention) is either there or near there now.

GSP and satellite makers are likewise replacing the makers of gimbles for compasses…. and

touch screen tills, they do more than the cash tills of old and also produce databases of sales transactions for database analysts to interrogate and interpret and update the stock systems of stores, reducing stock holding in obsolete lines and improving overall business efficiency

Crying the loss of jobs is a pointless task and we would all be worse off without the innovations which we now take for granted and whilst the dumb greenies would force as all backward to live like remote village Indians, living as subsistence vegetarian farmers

Let me tell you, it just aint gonna happen, now or ever.

We move inextricably onward. New inventions replacing old ones

New businesses and jobs replacing less productive old systems

relentlessly and ruthlessly in their path
Posted by Col Rouge, Tuesday, 24 November 2009 8:28:43 AM
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It's not a problem as long as our aged populace continues to expand, because for every manufacturing and retail job lost there will be a services job created. Once we get past about 2030 things could be a little more serious, but the world is likely to be a very different place by then. Manufacturing productivity is enormous. The world simply doesn't need the number of workers employed at it as once was the case. Much of retail could do with a shakeup as well, especially the likes of JB Hifi, Super AMart and Harvey Norman, who are just bunging a margin on an import anyway.

I do a lot of sales via the net, perhaps you should try a website?
Posted by Antiseptic, Tuesday, 24 November 2009 8:34:14 AM
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Simple- the employees of middle-man companies will gradually get new jobs (which may include online transactions- thus offsetting the supposed population shortage of employees we would need to fill for other expanding industries).
As most of these employees are students temporarily getting extra money before they get their intended job, I doubt they'd really care.

And quite frankly, I'll take whatever the best deal is I can find- I don't owe our middle men anything- especially considering how insanely expensive they tend to make the stuff they're selling.

Also, it means that the actual people producing the goods are making THEIR fair cut instead of giving it mostly to the middle person by selling them online.
Posted by King Hazza, Tuesday, 24 November 2009 9:22:43 AM
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The middlemen in many cases have feathered their own nest. Many farmers are now selling direct to the consumer (where possible) because they for too long have been stiffed by the wholesalers and large supermarkets.

If the real costs of production were equally spread over producer, wholesaler/distributor and retailer the middlemen would ensure their survival.

However, advancements in technology will always mean a shift in the nature and number of jobs.

Australia Post has boomed since Ebay and other online sites which has created more jobs. As others have said there will be a shift to more technological jobs but the simple fact is we will always need food, and locally grown/Australian grown produce is still a popular and conscious choice for many.
Posted by pelican, Tuesday, 24 November 2009 2:57:23 PM
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Rehctub, the world does not owe you a living.

Where we have a problem today, is not the cost of manufacture,
but the cost of getting products from the factory door to the
consumer, in a cost effective manner.

Let's face it, Mr Lowy did not earn billions, by charging low
rents!

There will still be jobs, they will simply change.

http://www.freshdirect.com/index.jsp

This company in New York, turns over 250 million $ a year, in
the city of New York alone, by giving consumers top food including
meat, delivered to their door. Consumers love the convenience,
no big rents are paid, people are still employed.

You ignore the changes going on around you, at your peril.
Posted by Yabby, Tuesday, 24 November 2009 11:34:06 PM
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