Hacker News Reader

Comment by madeofpalk | Hacker News Reader

You think it's because of "at will" employment?

Yes, that's part of it. It's a bit of a double-edged sword, but when it's easy to fire people, it also makes it a lot easier to hire them, because there is less of a risk when you make a mistake or need to change direction of your business.

While it's an upheaval to be sure, the vast majority of these laid-off employees have in-demand skills in a growing industry. Who I really feel for is people who get laid off in shrinking industries, where it's basically a game of musical chairs and there are fewer seats each round.

At will employment is a symptom, not a cause.

The reason why is be because starting a company in America is generally a good idea

No, it's because the companies aren't encumbered with a million layers of bureaucracy and regulation ensuring every single employee has every single possible safety net in the world preventing every single type of failure known.

Sure that must be the only reason, no-one would think of ever creating a company in socialist Europe. Having access to a huge, uniform market must not factor into this at all. Or any 100 other good reasons you're ignoring from a complex spectrum; no it must be the one and only one that fits your narrative.

I think it's because of our capitalist economy, a significant portion of which is the ability to hire and fire employees based on performance.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com