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Nation's Biggest Movie Theater Chain Cuts Workweek, Blaming ObamaCare

humbolt said:
Good Lord. Companies are all about more profits, and the consuming public is always about cheaper goods. It's both. The reason companies moved production to China is because it's too damn expensive to produce common items here. Bear in mind that we are very much a society in which most daily utilized goods are considered disposable.
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I don't disagree, and would have liked your post if you would have written, "The reason companies moved production to China is because doing so widely increases profit margins," instead of, "The reason companies moved production to China is because it's too damn expensive to produce common items here."
 
Middleground said:
I don't disagree, and would have liked your post if you would have written, "The reason companies moved production to China is because doing so widely increases profit margins," instead of, "The reason companies moved production to China is because it's too damn expensive to produce common items here."
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But what the poster said is the truth. Many manufacturers can't compete if they don't outsource their labor, because Americans as a whole demand cheap goods. If my company produces widgets, and my labor costs require that I charge 10 dollars per widget, but my competitor gets them made in China, and charges 1 dollar per widget, my company won't survive.
 
Macy's stopped carrying my favorite t shirts. Thanks Obamacare!
 
Middleground said:
I don't disagree, and would have liked your post if you would have written, "The reason companies moved production to China is because doing so widely increases profit margins," instead of, "The reason companies moved production to China is because it's too damn expensive to produce common items here."
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You do understand the difference between large and small profit margins are costs right? These are cost cutting moves, not revenue increasing ones.
 
lizzie said:
But what the poster said is the truth. Many manufacturers can't compete if they don't outsource their labor, because Americans as a whole demand cheap goods. If my company produces widgets, and my labor costs require that I charge 10 dollars per widget, but my competitor gets them made in China, and charges 1 dollar per widget, my company won't survive.
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Lululemon did not need to go to China to make a tidy profit on their yoga pants. Yet, they did. And don't think for one minute that they reduced the cost of their yoga wear.
 
Middleground said:
I don't disagree, and would have liked your post if you would have written, "The reason companies moved production to China is because doing so widely increases profit margins," instead of, "The reason companies moved production to China is because it's too damn expensive to produce common items here."
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But it is too expensive to produce, say, a stainless steel water bottle here. Such a product from China is usually not nearly as well made as the US version, but the difference in cost is prohibitive for such an inconsequential item. It cuts both ways. Are there more profits associated with cheaper production costs and higher sales volume? Decidedly yes. Are average consumers able to afford and fuel the higher volume? Again, yes. We are no longer an industrial/manufacturing- heavy society.
 
Middleground said:
Not companies wanting more profit?
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Of course companies want more profit. Profit is the sole reason companies exist and if they can shave a percentage of labor cost significant enough to justify the costs of relocating manufacturing, they can and will do it. Every single time. The truth of the matter is that the vast majority of these manufacturing jobs shipped overseas are low skilled positions most often filled by 2 different types of people. The first type of person that works in a job like this is young and ambitious. They are using the job to gain experience to be qualified for something better down the road. The second type are undereducated, low skilled, low IQ types who are not and will never be qualified for anything more. I've worked in manufacturing and I know exactly what I'm talking about. The people there all think they're worth $30+ per hour but in reality the factory rolls on just fine turning over a new crop of minimum wage type employees every couple of months.

The days of union wage manufacturing are over. We buy that crap from China and Mexico now. If it's any consolation, you can take solace in the fact that as the economies of these countries grow(on the backs of these low skilled laborers) they will run into the same problems that we have here only this time there won't be any place to ship these jobs off to. Then, maybe, you'll see a return of high priced union manufacturing jobs here... and then we all get to pay more for the same crap.
 
fmw said:
Companies can't be successful without effective employees. Employees, little and large, are critically important to companies. Why would you think otherwise?
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companies are effective by minimizing positions for any reason. The less hrs that a company can pay their people, the more money the company makes.

No#1 goal of company: minimize labor costs.
 
madman said:
companies are effective by minimizing positions for any reason. The less hrs that a company can pay their people, the more money the company makes.

No#1 goal of company: minimize labor costs.
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What's scary is that you actually believe this. You've been thoroughly union-washed.

Virtually every company is constantly looking for ways to expand their workforce and operations. All the time. In any climate. Period.

Every company I've worked for has always sought to expand operations, hire more people, produce more, grow more, create a bigger footprint inside and outside the company.

HOWEVER, costs must be met, and margins must be followed. Otherwise, investors will bail and banks will stop lending. It's just a matter of basic economics.

You have to listen to different people. The ones that are filling your head with this nonsense are brutally wrong.
 
Erod said:
What's scary is that you actually believe this. You've been thoroughly union-washed.

Virtually every company is constantly looking for ways to expand their workforce and operations. All the time. In any climate. Period.

Every company I've worked for has always sought to expand operations, hire more people, produce more, grow more, create a bigger footprint inside and outside the company.

HOWEVER, costs must be met, and margins must be followed. Otherwise, investors will bail and banks will stop lending. It's just a matter of basic economics.

You have to listen to different people. The ones that are filling your head with this nonsense are brutally wrong.
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that's laughable.
 
Erod said:
What a juvenile understanding of business. LOL

So, why would businesses hire people in the first place? Why bother if the whole reason is just to "screw them over" and fire them?

.
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Businesses need people to work. Speaking of juvenile understandings, are you really sitting here trying to say that business dont actively look for ways to screw over employees in order to save/make more money? Seriously man, if that is your idea understanding something you should probably just give up now.

Sounds like someone who's been fired from a few jobs for underperforming and won't take responsibility to me
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Are you able to back this up in any way at all? Do you know me? Or are you just throwing random stupid statements out there hoping something will stick because you aren't capable of talking facts or anything resembling an intelligent statement?
 
Kreton said:
Businesses need people to work. Speaking of juvenile understandings, are you really sitting here trying to say that business dont actively look for ways to screw over employees in order to save/make more money? Seriously man, if that is your idea understanding something you should probably just give up now.



Are you able to back this up in any way at all? Do you know me? Or are you just throwing random stupid statements out there hoping something will stick because you aren't capable of talking facts or anything resembling an intelligent statement?
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Good gosh, dude.

I've have worked my way up in several companies. They have gone to great lengths to provide me opportunity, and I seize that opportunity. It's there for the taking if you want it.

Yes, companies are always looking to get rid of unproductive people and replace them with better people. You're right there. And when margins are not being met, they have to cut people and ask more of others. Reality of economics.

What you're defending is the lazy complainers that call in sick at least once a week - EVERY WEEK WITHOUT FAIL - and you're trying to blame the company for wanting to rid itself of those types.

You see employment as a right and a sentence. I see it as a privilege and an opportunity.
 
madman said:
that's laughable.
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You've obviously never been in a decision-making position within a company. The more profits and people and locations you have, the more secure a business is in good times and bad.

Investors and banks demand certain profit margins and returns. That drives growth and downsizing, not a bunch of mean-spirited executives who get their jollies by making people suffer.

What YOU are saying is laughable.
 
Erod said:
Good gosh, dude.

I've have worked my way up in several companies. They have gone to great lengths to provide me opportunity, and I seize that opportunity. It's there for the taking if you want it.

Yes, companies are always looking to get rid of unproductive people and replace them with better people. You're right there. And when margins are not being met, they have to cut people and ask more of others. Reality of economics.

What you're defending is the lazy complainers that call in sick at least once a week - EVERY WEEK WITHOUT FAIL - and you're trying to blame the company for wanting to rid itself of those types.

You see employment as a right and a sentence. I see it as a privilege and an opportunity.
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Before I respond here, did you accidently quote the wrong post?

If you didnt misquote here, are you able to actually prove or reasonably support anything you posted above?
 
Erod said:
You've obviously never been in a decision-making position within a company. The more profits and people and locations you have, the more secure a business is in good times and bad.

Investors and banks demand certain profit margins and returns. That drives growth and downsizing, not a bunch of mean-spirited executives who get their jollies by making people suffer.

What YOU are saying is laughable.
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you assume wrong!
When i was a branch manager, i was told cut all costs as much as possible. Including labor.
 
CaptainCourtesy said:
It's a business decision 'tis true. There are other options, however. These other options, though, might cut into profits. Not something most companies would choose to do.
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Movie theater margins aren't as large as many think CC., the theater takes a very small cut of ticket sales which is why concession has that ridiculous markup. There really isn't a lot of wiggle room when costs skew up something's got to give, it's much more likely to harm your bottom line by furter increasing concessions, ticket prices are set by the studios iirc, and that leaves only personnel.
 
CaptainCourtesy said:
It's a business decision 'tis true. There are other options, however. These other options, though, might cut into profits. Not something most companies would choose to do.
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There are only so many profits and those have to be divided up between those who own the business. Its a FOR profit business.
 
madman said:
you assume wrong!
When i was a branch manager, i was told cut all costs as much as possible. Including labor.
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What's your point? Companies seek to improve the bottom line. Sometimes that means cutting costs; other times that means expanding.
 
madman said:
that's laughable.
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No it isn't. The whole point of business is growth, Erod was completely right in his response. And he's also correct that margins push growth, he didn't mention that margins can also drive shrinkage but that should be understood.

Typical margins for a sucessful business, 8-10% and that is paying bills plus showing a respectable profit, +10% profit is growth, 6-8% is barely holding on, sub 6% is shrinking/dying.
 
humbolt said:
But it is too expensive to produce, say, a stainless steel water bottle here. Such a product from China is usually not nearly as well made as the US version, but the difference in cost is prohibitive for such an inconsequential item. It cuts both ways. Are there more profits associated with cheaper production costs and higher sales volume? Decidedly yes. Are average consumers able to afford and fuel the higher volume? Again, yes. We are no longer an industrial/manufacturing- heavy society.
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Again, I don't disagree with you here. Right or wrong, we are no longer an industrial/manufacturing-heavy society.
 
Jack Fabulous said:
Of course companies want more profit. Profit is the sole reason companies exist and if they can shave a percentage of labor cost significant enough to justify the costs of relocating manufacturing, they can and will do it. Every single time.
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I would not say every single time. Some companies never shipped their manufacturing to China, mainly because they didn't want their high-end products to turn into crap. So, instead of gaining a bigger profit margin, they kept things status quo. But--admittedly--they are far and few between. There seems to be an itty-bitty bit of a swing towards companies using the "made in the USA/Canada" angle to promote their business, since "green thinking" is starting to pick up a bit of steam.


The truth of the matter is that the vast majority of these manufacturing jobs shipped overseas are low skilled positions most often filled by 2 different types of people. The first type of person that works in a job like this is young and ambitious. They are using the job to gain experience to be qualified for something better down the road. The second type are undereducated, low skilled, low IQ types who are not and will never be qualified for anything more. I've worked in manufacturing and I know exactly what I'm talking about. The people there all think they're worth $30+ per hour but in reality the factory rolls on just fine turning over a new crop of minimum wage type employees every couple of months.
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Works in China!

The days of union wage manufacturing are over. We buy that crap from China and Mexico now. If it's any consolation, you can take solace in the fact that as the economies of these countries grow(on the backs of these low skilled laborers) they will run into the same problems that we have here only this time there won't be any place to ship these jobs off to. Then, maybe, you'll see a return of high priced union manufacturing jobs here... and then we all get to pay more for the same crap.
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I don't see the fine lining. Then again, I don't live in China. But I do know that all the manufacturing is ruining the environment, people are killing themselves over their slave-like jobs and are starting to push back. I am sure in another 30-50 years or so, we'll be buying our cheap trinkets from some destitute country in Africa, and in the process, ruin their environment, too.
 
Middleground said:
I don't see the fine lining. Then again, I don't live in China. But I do know that all the manufacturing is ruining the environment, people are killing themselves over their slave-like jobs and are starting to push back. I am sure in another 30-50 years or so, we'll be buying our cheap trinkets from some destitute country in Africa, and in the process, ruin their environment, too.
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You just touched on another reason why so many manufacturers are looking to places like China and Mexico. They used to be able to get away with all sorts of stuff here in the states but those days are long gone. Regulations regarding industrial waste processing and discharge are incredibly strict and staying in compliance with the multiple agencies that regulate and monitor this activity costs a fortune. Another in a long line of unintended consequences.

Yea!!! We passed laws which dramatically reduced pollution!!!

Boo!!! It costs so much to stay in compliance that it isn't worth producing anything here anymore.


Pick your poison.
 
CanadaJohn said:
But but but Obama guaranteed that if you like the healthcare you have, nothing in this bill will stop you from keeping it.
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What he didn't say is, even if you manage to keep it, you can't afford to use it.
 
Tigger said:
Pete, what you need to understand is that the United States is not Europe or the EU. This nation was founded and grown by people who wanted to get away from Europe and thinge European. Like Socialism, for example. To that end this nation's systems and society were founded on the ideal of PERSONAL Responsibility, not GOVERNMENTAL Nannydom. It has NEVER been the place of the US Government to have ANY involvement in healthcare. In fact, President Reagan's bill forcing hospitals to treat those who cannot pay is one of the greatest signs that he is NOT the grand Conservative that many still make him out to be. Instead, he was simply the same bumbling Liberal Democrat that he has always been. Yes, most of us get our healthcare through our employers. Most of us also don't plan our careers as movie theater managers. Think little, get little. Think big, get big.
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Yep... we took many of what the other nations considered dregs, and these people helped make this nation the greatest nation in the world. Because the system they were operating under allowed them to be free.

You would think the Europeans would learn something from this, but noooooo... a massive portion of the EU population are ignorant about the greatest and most successful experiment in the history of mankind.

We were also quite the pacifist nation until the Europeans decided they wanted to kill each other by the millions.

We not only stepped in twice, we bailed out Europe and set the foundation for freedom amongst the tribes. Then... when the Balkans were afire... in your own backyard... you folks couldn't get the job done so we had to step in again.

We understand your inferiority complex, and enjoy it when we elect weakling socialists like Carter, Clinton and Obama.

Now Pete... how about answering the question I posed to you after your inane statements earlier?
 
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