Reply #15: wtf? [View All]

[Hannah Bell]

there has been a change in the second-hand business over the last 5-10 years, at least in my area. it used to be that there were a few moderate-sized shops run by the majors (goodwill, salvation army), a couple of smaller ones run by local charities, and a handful of independent for-profit shops.

now there's one mega-store (goodwill), a handful of medium-sized ones run by not-so-local charities (e.g. two medical businesses tied to national capital, habitat for humanity salvage business, etc.), & two small for-profit local businesses. Plus a couple of independents that recycled scrap metal are gone replaced by "recyling center" that's also the garbage collection service that's also national corporation.

iow, big capital is squeezing out local capital even in the second-hand/recycling business.

And a lot of the labor in all of these is volunteer or subsidized by government, i.e. goodwill gets subsidy for "training" their workers, the others get subsidized workers from programs that supposedly "re-train" displaced/older workers -- or americorp labor -- temporary, unbenefited, & the "training" for the most part = the kind of work that high school students or grads used to do -- general labor, cashiering.

all in the name of "good works".

also now if you sell to the big recycler the government has a record of it -- you must give name/phone etc. was not the case a year ago.

squeezing out local small business, local casual labor, local marginal means of survival.