More than Jobs are Lost

There is no question in my mind that the current round of job cuts in the Ontario Public Service is driven by politics and optics. The McGuinty Liberals have made their move to demonstrate to the electorate that they can be “tough conservative fiscal managers”. The result of this chest pounding bravado is that hundreds of talented , dedicated, hardworking men and women will lose their jobs so the government will get the “headlines” it needs to position itself to attract right of center voters in this fall’s provincial election. The fact that hundreds of families will suffer the impact and hardship of job loss is seen as nothing more than the price for political expedience.

Modern employers go to great lengths to disassociate themselves from the humanity of the workforce. In boardrooms, workers are referred to as “resources, expendable assets, fiscal liabilities or just plain jobs. Any term can be used so long as it does not conjure up an image of a human face. But the reality is every worker/job has a face, a story, a life attached to it. Jobs are a means to an end and never the end. Jobs support families, build communities and is some cases give use what we need to fulfill our dreams. When a community loses jobs it sets of a chain reaction that can have far reaching repercussions.

Take Larry for instance. He is a twenty something who has been working as a customer service representative in the Ontario Public Service for about five years. He enjoys his job and by all accounts is a reliable and effective worker. He has recently been advised his job has been eliminated and he will be facing a permanent lay-off. In communities in Northern Ontario where good paying union jobs are getting tougher to find so Larry’s pending job loss will mean he will have to move to find work.

Larry has been married for about two years. A year ago his bought his first home and six month after that his first child was born. Larry thought his life was on track so he and his wife Indara were looking at have a second child. Indara was planning to start an in home daycare so she could stay home with the kids while contributing to the family income. They are lucky to live in a great neighbourhood with many young working families.

Larry likes to be involved in his community and stay active. He volunteers as a Scout Leader. He likes to play soccer and sits on his league’s executive. Several weekends every summer Larry volunteers for soccer skills camp for kids. Indara’s parents are aging and Larry is happy to maintain their home and yard.

Indara has a psychology degree and likes volunteering her time at a local school working with special needs children. She also supports her elderly parents so they can stay in their own home.
Larry and Indara like to think of themselves as an ordinary family who enjoy being involved in their community; not unlike many of their neighbour. But the loss of “one job” will have a significant impact on their town. So let’s recap. Their town will lose a scout leader, soccer volunteer and a league executive. An aging couple will lose their support system and easy access to their grandchildren. The neighbourhood will lose quality daycare spaces and a skilled volunteer at a local school

There will be a human toll as well. Friends and family will be separated while facing the financial realities of job loss. There is no doubt this young couple will be facing stress producing challenges for some time. Many such experiences can lead to divorce or at the very least marital distress.

So the next time you see a newspaper headline about job cuts, remember there is far more happening than just the loss of a job…