Here’s a new economic indicator that is not only easy to grasp, but also speaks both to the strength of the economy and the underlying loss of jobs that fuels so much of the angst that ripples through our national workforce. It’s the Used Cubicle Index, according to a story in the Chicago Tribune.

“Mounds of used office furniture are piling up as businesses close down or cut back, [and] at one Chicago office furniture retailer, the scene looks like a graveyard of downsized and defunct companies,” the Tribune reported. “Rightsize Facility Performance has 700 used chairs, 150 secondhand conference tables and scores of pre-owned file cabinets and cubicles for sale.”

OK, you may be saying, so what if Rightsize is a broker in used office equipment? What does that tell you? Well, here’s what it tells you: “Last year we had access to 30,000 to 40,000 office cubicles across the country,” according to Mason Awtry, Rightsize’s president. “We’re estimating that by the summer we’ll have access to 250,000 cubicles across the country.”

Journalists are known to be a little bit math-challenged, but by my calculations, Rightsize is forecasting a six- to eight-times increase in the number of used cubicles. That’s a lot of cubes, representing a lot of lost workers.

According to the Tribune story, “Rightsize says it is getting about 40 inquiries a day from companies wanting to sell to it, up from eight to 12 previously, and it is increasing total warehouse space by about 25 percent, to 200,000 square feet, to accommodate its $3 million worth of inventory. The deals are too hard to pass up, and Rightsize is betting that eventually the market will turn. For one thing, Awtry says he’s getting some of the furniture at no cost because of the labor Rightsize employs to take it away. ‘In the past, we might have said we will remove the product and give you $20,000,’ Awtry said.” Now, according to the story, Awtry tells customers: “We’ll remove the product.”

This is another of those sign-of-the-times stories that speak volumes about the mess our country is in. Lots of people are out of work, and no matter how some may try to spin the news another way, there’s no indication that we’ve hit bottom just yet.

Having said that, I like the Used Cubicle Index as an economic indicator that gives a quick and meaningful sense of just what is going on in the workforce. Do you have an indicator that’s just as good—or better? If you do, I’d love to hear about it, in a comment attached to the bottom of this post or sent directly to me at jhollon@workforce.com.

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