This Week in Your Wallet: September 20, 2011
This week a little something different. I’d like to know how you feel.
Let me explain: I woke up Monday morning in time to catch Matt Lauer’s interview with President Bill Clinton on Today. I’ve linked to it here for any of you who’d like to see it in full — and it is worth watching. But what stuck with me — as the President readied to unveil his $3 trillion deficit reduction plan which allows the George W. Bush tax cuts to expire and limits deductions and exclusions for those making $250,000 a year– was Clinton’s insistence that the rich won’t mind paying more. Moreover, he seemed to be saying that we all have to give a little bit to get the country back to where we want it to be. I tend, as those of you who’ve read me for years likely know, to lean a little more left than right. That said, as I’ve gotten older — and my earnings have grown — I’ve surprised myself feeling by more Republican, particularly on taxes. Not this time. This time, I’m with Clinton and Buffett. I’m with Don Peck who wrote a frightening and compelling piece in The Atlantic Monthly entitled Can The Middle Class Be Saved. It’s not short but you should read it anyway. I feel like if people like me need to pay more in taxes going forward, so be it. I’d prefer that to coincide with proposals that put the money to work on both education and innovation initiatives that move America in the right direction, but I understand those things will also take time.
Please weigh in. I want to know how you feel about this as well. Now, here’s what happened in your wallet last week.
Because we all love to pick on Netflix…
In July, I wrote to you about the Netflix price hike, and announced that I would be canceling my service. As it turns out, I wasn’t the only one. Numbers released last week reveal that, in light of the 60% price increase, the company is down 600,000 U.S subscribers since June. Of this year. What’s more, its stock shares are now 40% lower than they were before the unveiling of higher prices.
But wait — there’s more! Sunday night around midnight — while you were either asleep or still basking in the glow of a most excellent Emmy’s — Netflix CEO Reed Hastings announced via blogpost that the company would be splitting into two. The online streaming side of things will still be called Netflix, but the DVD mail-order side will become “Qwikster.” The obvious question that emerges is, what does this mean for consumers? Prices for both services will remain the same (for now), but customers who want both will now have two entries on their credit card bills and will eventually have to go to two different websites depending on the service they want.
Looking at the recent failure of Borders, Hastings wrote, “Most companies that are great at something – like AOL dialup or Borders bookstores – do not become great at new things people want (streaming for us) because they are afraid to hurt their initial business.” Whether or not you buy this explanation for the change, I’m interested to see how this pans out. An excellent analysis in Fortune notes that splitting the two services might allow the companies to charge the right prices for the right services — let’s hope so! For more on what this announcement means, check out the Fortune analysis here.
The age-old debate: Time, or Money?
What would you give up to have more time or flexibility in your schedule? A new survey by MomCorps has some surprising answers.
Forty-two percent of adults surveyed would give up a portion of their salary for more flexibility at work. The average amount of money these adults would relinquish? Six percent! For a salary of $40,000, that’s $2,400.
What’s more, the survey found that 12% working men are willing to give up more than 10% of their salary for increased flexibility at work. Only six percent of women are willing to give up a tenth of their salary in exchange for flexibility.
“The fact that employees of all ages are willing to give up any percentage of their salary in exchange for more flexibility over their work schedule is significant, especially given the current economic climate and record unemployment rates,” said Allison O’Kelly, founder and CEO of Mom Corps. “Employees are realizing they have a voice in asking for work options, and a highly volatile economic environment isn’t deterring this attitude.”
For more details on the survey, you can check out the MomCorps website here.
And just for fun
In case August’s dismal jobs report still has you down, here’s a piece of news that might actually make you smile. I’ve talked before about the best industries to look towards in a recession (healthcare, mining, accounting services, leisure and hospitality), but do you know who the world’s biggestemployers are?
The Economist created a chart of the ten biggest global employers — i.e, single companies or organizations — and came out with some surprising results. Did you know that the U.S Department of Defense employs 3.2 million people, or 1% of the entire U.S population? I sure didn’t. Walmart came in third with 2.1 million employees, and McDonald’s employs 1.7 million people.
Working for the other companies on the list might require a work visa. To see what I mean, check out thefull chart here.
Have a great week!
Jean
