Dear Chicago,

Chicago, I love you.

There's nothing like gazing south-east and seeing the peaks of your manmade mountains piercing the night sky. Driving through the Loop as the Kennedy becomes the Dan Ryan in the late spring always feels like a movie. If "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" was directed by a native that's what it would look like.

The red line cars hum with an energy late at night; pregnant moments with memories waiting to be born.

Chicagoans are always ready for the next thing. The current is already the past. We (well, they) are always looking to the future. Constantly on the move. "What's next? What now? What's coming?" Chicago drivers are horrible.

Whenever you tell someone you're from Chicago, the inevitable first comment is always about the weather. Always. Chicago is cold, Chicago is hot. There is nothing in between. Chicago is beautiful, Chicago is ugly. Chicago is friendly, Chicago is mean. There is nothing in between.

It's only looking at Chicago from the outside that I can finally describe Chicago. Chicago is a mean, cold, spectacular looking spaceship hurtling through space toward a distant future with hidden surprises around every corner. Chicago is the realest city in the USA. Maybe the world. 

Chicago.

I love you.

Wage Theft

I saw this youtube video recently detailing how US employers steal billions (with a B) of dollars in pay from American workers annually.

Many American businesses feel that they are entitled to their employees' time. This belief is manifested in the expectation that employees not only provide labor hours over the 40 hour standard, but also use their various personal electronic devices to stay "in the loop" by responding to email, texts or other communication.

I could write a ton about wage theft. However, the focus of this post will be it's detrimental effect on the economy.

To couch our discussion, let's use a specific example. My sister-in-law (and good friend) Nancy recently quit her job as a public accountant. Those in the know probably cringe; they are right to. There is an explicit expectation of accountants at Nancy's firm to work hours well beyond 40.

How much beyond? When asked, Nancy answered that the highest number of hours she ever billed in a week was 77. That was just billable hours. Billable hours don't include administrative time and often higher-ups put implicit pressure on staff to reduce their billable time for the clients.

By taking an average of Nancy's billable high with 40 hours we can get a rough estimate of the hours she worked every week (this happens to be 58.5 hours, so 18.5 hours over 40). Her salary during this time was $55,000 a year, which equates to just about $26.45 hourly. According to Illinois law, those employed in Illinois should be paid time and a half for every hour worked over 40 in a work week. Thus, Nancy should have been paid $39.67 for every one of the extra 18.5 hours she worked.

So, this firm cheated Nancy out of 84 weeks X 18.5 hours per week X $39.67 =

$61,647.18.

..............yeah.


That's a lot of money.

A not-at-all comprehensive list of things Nancy could have bought with $61,647.18:
1) Porsche Boxster
2) A Tiny House
3) 610 Shares of Apple Stock
4) 206 iPhone 6's
5) A 46' Sailboat
6) 233 Toilets from Home Depot

and, most importantly,

7) Almost one additional employee's salary and benefits.

You get the idea.

Furthermore, dear reader, consider the amount of money being stolen from all the employees that work at Nancy's old firm. It's hard to believe that her excess time would lie outside the norm.

We hear a lot of talk about job creation. Nancy's example would serve to demonstrate that at least one job was not created due to her employer's wage theft, not to mention the wage theft of the other employees she left behind.