Wanted: "punctual and reliable" workers

In the worst job market since the Great Depression, it seems that employers are having trouble finding people to hire who are punctual and reliable.

From the The New York Fed (Empire) Index we learn that ...

In a series of supplementary questions, respondents were queried about difficulties in finding workers proficient in certain types of skills; they were also asked to estimate training costs to bring new hires up to speed. Manufacturers’ responses to the August survey were not substantially different from those recorded in March 2007, when these questions were last asked. The workers seen as most difficult to find were those with

advanced computer skills, followed by those who were punctual and reliable. Training costs to bring a typical new hire up to speed were estimated at 6½ percent of annual compensation, on average. Firms also reported that the wage or salary of a typical worker was expected to rise by about 2½ percent, on average, over the next twelve months.

That's just sad.