Shipler's Theoretical Analysis

Shipler used the employer’s point of view to show the audience the obstacles that get in the way of becoming employed. Shipler mentioned that many employers seek “people skills” which means people who are good with people weather it be having patience or conversing with customers. Employers also will look for someone with good work ethic. The only problem is that good work ethic is not usually there for many people who are welfare recipients or former inmates even those with lower education or work experience. Shipler is trying to make the reader understand the employers and there reasoning. Employers will often say that the poor does not have the work ethic required too be employed under them. Shipler used many examples throughout the book and one of them was that “soft skills” have become a problem in other words people skills, Shipler said “The soft skills should have been taught in the family, but in many cases, the family has forfeited that role to the employer. The employer simply does not know what to do…”(Shipler 126). Shipler hit the point on this one by saying employees from rough areas are hurting more than helping the companies. Shipler does an over the top amazing job on his argument for the people in the high chair which are the employers but does not touch base for a solution for those who are down in the dumps which happen to be the poor.