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PUBLISHER'S LETTER www.siliconchip.com.au Publisher & Editor-in-Chief Leo Simpson, B.Bus., FAICD Production Manager Greg Swain, B.Sc.(Hons.) Technical Staff John Clarke, B.E.(Elec.) Robert Flynn Ross Tester Rick Walters Reader Services Ann Jenkinson Advertising Manager Brendon Sheridan Phone (03) 9720 9198 Mobile 0416 009 217 Regular Contributors Brendan Akhurst Rodney Champness Garry Cratt, VK2YBX Julian Edgar, Dip.T.(Sec.), B.Ed Mike Sheriff, B.Sc, VK2YFK Philip Watson, MIREE, VK2ZPW Bob Young SILICON CHIP is published 12 times a year by Silicon Chip Publications Pty Ltd. A.C.N. 003 205 490. All material copyright ©. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the written consent of the publisher. Printing: Macquarie Print, Dubbo, NSW. Distribution: Network Distribution Company. Subscription rates: $59 per year in Australia. For overseas rates, see the subscription page in this issue. Editorial & advertising offices: Unit 8, 101 Darley St, Mona Vale, NSW 2103. Postal address: PO Box 139, Collaroy Beach, NSW 2097. Phone (02) 9979 5644. Fax (02) 9979 6503. E-mail: silchip<at>siliconchip.com.au ISSN 1030-2662 and maximum * Recommended price only. 2  Silicon Chip It is time to start employing more people Now that the Federal election is out of the way, maybe the Government can start seriously addressing Australia’s major problem: unemployment. We have gone too far down the road to “lean and mean” corporations, both government and private. It is time to reassess what all the huge job losses over the last ten years or so have meant for Australians. For those who have lost their jobs it has generally meant a fringe existence, wondering if they will ever have a proper job again and a great loss of self-confidence. For the wider community, it has meant rising crime, drug abuse and suicides. And it has also led to a general lowering of service standards right across government and private enterprise. This has been typified by the recent debacles of Sydney’s water parasite infestation, Victoria’s loss of gas supplies and Brisbane’s electricity blackouts. The fact is that in most gov­ernment utilities and in many of the larger companies, there are just not enough people, particularly qualified people, to do the job. Maintenance is not being done and overall safety levels are dropping. Companies and government organisations simply cannot provide the service levels that used to be delivered. If you need convincing, just try phoning any large or medium sized company or government body. You will no doubt need to phone a 131 number and then you will be placed in an intermi­nable queue. “Your call is important to us, please hold and etc, etc”, is the drivel you have to put up with in between listening to some irritating music-on-hold. And then when you do finally get to talk to a human, you will often find that he/she hasn’t a clue what you’re talking about and there is no guarantee that your request/ report or whatever will be acted upon. These companies and organisations are clearly not attempt­ing to provide proper levels of service and ultimately, they will suffer in the long term. So will their customers. The situation is now so bad that it is a real pleasure to phone a company or organisation and find that not only do they answer the phone quickly but a real person answers. If they are able to quickly help, then so much the better. Thankfully, in the electronics business, most companies still have real people answering the phones and some provide very good levels of serv­ice. You can only do that if you have adequate numbers of people who are trained to do their jobs. For the future, the Government must actively start encour­aging companies to employ more people. The Government likes to talk about how many jobs it has created over a period. That is nonsense; governments don’t create jobs, they destroy them. For their part, companies need to review their long-term strategy (if they have one). They need to realise once more that the only way to grow and make more profits is to invest heavily in their people and ultimately, to employ more people. And many Australians need to realise that profit is not a dirty word. If companies don’t make profits, they can’t afford to employ people. Leo Simpson