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enemployment rate=competiton?

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#22 ·
I started my company after being "let go" I was already doing landscaping and lawn care so I'm not sure if that counts. I do feel frustrated by the so many people with a s10 and a walkbehind. I moved to a new area to start my company these people kill me only two other competitors trim shrubs and cut lawns and no one is serious into chemical lawn care. Still no matter what size you are the smallest guys can affect your bussines. I make a minimum no matter what lawn I'm on if they cut it for 20 and I could be doing it for 40 it affects me. It seems to me that it is dynamic if you aren't growing you are shrinking.
 
#23 ·
Originally posted by tiedeman

Kind of weird that the last time our rate was this high was back when the first Bush was President
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Not to make this politcal, but please don't say things about presidents without any credible source. Just because something "was" when "whoever" was in office does not mean that it was his fault. Often times, current presidents have to deal with the mistakes of past presidents. I would focus on your state government, not the federal gov. (By the way, the economy is on the rebound, coming out of the recession. . . at the end of somebody's current term).
 
#24 ·
Originally posted by Rook00
Not to make this politcal, but please don't say things about presidents without any credible source. Just because something "was" when "whoever" was in office does not mean that it was his fault. Often times, current presidents have to deal with the mistakes of past presidents. I would focus on your state government, not the federal gov. (By the way, the economy is on the rebound, coming out of the recession. . . at the end of somebody's current term).
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I thought that I did apologize a couple of posts back :p
 
#25 ·
Originally posted by brucec32
I don't think much of the President either for other reasons than you, I'm sure, but how irrational it is to blame him for teacher layoffs in a dying state like Michigan(newsflash, nobody wants to live there so corporations can't bring jobs there)

Outsourcing is a problem for the future, but is currently such a small portion of the economy that it's almost negligible in terms of your state's unemployment rate. Michigan has a glut of relatively uneducated, unskilled workers vs. demand. That's your problem, not who occupies the white house.

I guess George Bush causes cancer too.
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Man...you must have forgot to take your MEDS brucec32,...a BIG chunk of the people in FLA. are from michigan (and a whole lot still have a house here, they only go to fla to get out of the winters here...spring hits in mich ...1/2 the state of fla move back up here..) as for the skill level in mich...you would be WALKING your mower to your next customer if it wasnt for the SMART people of mich.......

FLA is a vacation state.... most of the people arnt even RESIDENTS of fla their residents of MICHIGAN.,,,,like they have been for their whole life......your post is way off their buddy..

like someone else said COME ON UP HERE and see if you can handle it...where is the info to back up the lack of skill that you say is up here????

im going to stop now before i start getting to pis*ed off, but dont knock a whole state when your 1000+ miles away...come live here for a year or 2 before you open your mouth please or just butt out...

thank you,

sorry to go on and on..
 
#26 ·
Originally posted by brucec32
Please quit spreading incorrect information. They consider anyone who wants work to be unemployed, via statistical sampling. Not just people drawing unemployment benefits. From the government's website....

"Who is counted as unemployed?
Persons are classified as unemployed if they do not have a job, have actively looked for work in the prior 4 weeks, and are currently available for work"
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Your nuts AGAIN thier buddy

they dont know whos working or not on a daily basis..the figures are based on the the people ON unemployment. if the checks run out and their not getting paid any more, then their NOT counted..

(for starters how the He*l would they know to change the numbers if i give 5 people jobs....? you think im calling the Gov. to let her know that 5 more people are working...i think not.

So how is it you think they will know that the 5 people are now working???

(ill give you a hint: they only know if you apply for unemployment, their not mind readers...)

the quote your making dosent make any sence...
"Who is counted as unemployed?
Persons are classified as unemployed if they do not have a job, have actively looked for work in the prior 4 weeks, and are currently available for work"

they ONLY know this info if your ON unemployment...

(so telll us how they will know if im unemployed? and looking for a job????/...... "o" ya... i forgot a state rep. drives you back and forth to job interviews!...)

DONE 4 now
 
#27 ·
As a whole the people of Michigan and Florida are about of equal intelligence. There is a higher percentage of high school graduates in Michigan but there is a higher percentage of people with degrees in Florida.

According to the 2000 US Census there were:

High school graduates, percent of persons age 25+
Florida 79.9
Michigan 83.4
US 80.4

Bachelor's degree or higher, pct of persons age 25+
Florida 22.8
Michigan 21.8
US 24.4

Source www.fedstats.gov
 
#29 ·
Hey Bruce I'm not gonna sit and argue over this matter with you, cause I know that you believe that you are right. But I live in a different state and I am aware of the affect that other businesses have on our industry. I have been doing landscaping/lawn maint. for over twenty five years and have lived thru the ups and downs but I'm still here. I hope that in a few years you can say the same!
As for the unemployment thing discussed earlier..... If the unemployment commission and the Government know who's working and who's not, then why do people have to bother with signing up for unemployment? Shouldn't the Government just send them a check without all the forms filled out? Or hey, do they really know about each and every dime that everyone works for under the table? Come on Bruce put on that thinking cap and use your brain! Oh and one last thing, I was wondering if you or someone you may know of in Florida has ever heard of hiring illegal aliens so they could get work done cheaper and not have to pay any benefits including unemployment! Naw stuff like this couldn't happen! Cause the government would know about this and put an immediate stop to it, RIGHT?
I enjoyed all your B.S on this thread and now I think it's time for me to print out your comments and use them to fertilize my garden! In otherwords I'm bored with you, so have at it with me but don't expect any more replies back from me on this thread.
Good luck with your business this year,
CHAINSAW
 
Discussion starter · #33 ·
O.K. my next question (probably more important)

What do you guys think we can do to discourage new competition from entering the market?

I tell all my friend that the groundscare biz sux. hehe.
 
#34 ·
I don't think that we should discourage, but educate them instead of what we go through, the business aspect, and what the industry goes through. It's not easy what we do and it's not cheap. So by educating them instead of discouraging them it might open their eyes a lot more to our work.
 
Discussion starter · #35 ·
Maybe you're right tiedeman...but the way I feel about them right now I'd rather kick their butts right out of business.

I think the words of Ray Kroc would fit my feelings best: "If my competition was drowning I'd give them a hose."
 
#36 ·
I'm worried about getting laid off and I see that some of you guy's have dealt with this, I have a great job with the telco here in Atlanta and I've watched as we've had sftware developed to do what we used to do, I'm not bitter, Thats just life and a company should do everything it can to stay competitive and reduce costs including my l'scaping company. I'll quit preaching now and just say that it's good to know that I won't be the only one thats had their back to the wall and had to grow as quickly as possible to make ends meet, Oh yeah, My wife moved down here from Michigan to get a teaching job because they're so scarce up there, Btw, I'm one of the displaced workers and we have more business than we can handle dn here because of all the new construction and I haven't got the feeling that I'm stepping on anyone's toes
 
Discussion starter · #37 ·
grassredneck--listen, I'm not trying to single out anyone new to the lawn business, and I do understand your situation. I may have done the same thing as you in your situation...in fact, you probably entered the business more prepared than I was--I was only a freshman in High School.

I am more or less venting my frustration.
 
#38 ·
I didn't take it that way, I worked for a landscaper when I was younger so I don't feel I'm a newbie by any means but I can relate somewhat because I've had several acct's taken from under me by the "20$ a cut scrub" and it's tough to not be mad but thats part of the business. I'm sure that guy has bills to pay as well
 
#39 ·
Originally posted by tiedeman
tell ya what brucey babe, how about you come up here and live, you might have a different opinion then.
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I don't want to. Few do. Many northern states, possibly yours, have declining populations. That's exactly my point. And I told you before, don't call me babe in public.

I have a beach 15 minutes from my front door. I pay no state income taxes. Why would I want to go work there? Why would I want to shovel snow just to get out of my house? And most of all, why would any corporate CEO want to put a factory or office there? He would want to put it where people want to live and where the business climate is positive. Not where it's dominated by unions.

Hmm...no state income tax , few unions, a Republican governor, and it's 80 degrees and beautiful here almost every day November through mid April. Gee, I wonder why businesses are flocking to be here and unemployment is under 5%?

That dang George Bush. He made it snow in March in Michigan. I read it on the internet.
 
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#40 ·
Originally posted by topgunlandscaping
Your right I'm not educated hell i didn't even graduate hight school, but you know what there Mr know it all, I'm smart enough to own 2 business a lawn care/landscaping company and a 250 student dance studio with my wife. So life here in Michigan isn't to bad, you just have to work for what you want in life. To me it sounds like you are just going to sit back and run your mouth from sunny Florida and you probably haven't worked a real day in your life. and as for bush he walks in to a mess that your friend Clinton left behind and now he gets all the slack. Look what are Governor is doing messing it up and then when she is voted out of office which i hope is soon, the next person will take the fall. So lets not jump on the bush sucks campaign just yet, its only been 3 years, look what Clinton did in 8 years.. Cigars ring a bell....
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Get the chip off your shoulder, you're just looking foolish. Nobody was talking about you in particular. And I don't make the facts, I just read em. Michigan was a long time manufacturing state, so there is not the supply of highly eductated tech type people there that there would be in a place like Atlanta or California. And with the moving of manufacturing jobs overseas, it's left a glut of people who are not educated in the ways of the "new economy". It's not a knock on Michigan, it's just a fact. But those miserable Winters do not make it an attractive place for new businesses to locate to, that's also a fact. When the sunbelt fills up, then it will become more attractive.

And who said I'm a buddy of Clinton? You sure jump to a lot of conclusions. Is that a new dance move?

Yes, I got my sore knees and back riding in the back of limosines. Interesting what insecurities people carry around with them.
 
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