Layoffs, Cut Hours, and Pay Cuts, Oh My

Andrew Sullivan posts an interesting set of pie charts this morning. Both charts show that the majority of the people the poll takers know have been either laid off, had their hours cut, or had their pay cut. In fact, my own father was laid off from his first-year teaching job and the end of last year. The recession has cause companies and organizations to keep themselves running by handling money in a way that may harm employees. Now, my father, even as an inexperienced teacher, got hired back at the same school. This is a rare situation, especially for first time school teachers. When people get laid off, they have less money to spend on consumer goods, which causes companies to produce less, so they lay off more people. This ongoing circle that is the economy will not get any better unless we have the government help out in order to stabilize the economy.