|
|
Libertarian Leprechaun
by Paul Molloy |
|
|
Unions and the Future of America As the United States celebrates its 124th Labor Day – what better time to reflect on where its workforce has been, and where it seems to be going. While we're celebrating, we might also note the history of unions in America and the ironic truth of their self-destruction! The first Labor Day was held in New York on Tuesday, September 5th, 1882 when either Peter McGuire - co-founder of the American Federation of Labor - or Matthew MacGuire, a machinist, trumpeted the idea to celebrate “the social and economic achievements of American workers”. Congress made it a national holiday in 1894 and designated the first Monday in September as its celebratory date.* Organized labor continued to grow and thrive as union membership blossomed during the first half of the 20th century. Membership in American unions reached its peak in the 1950’s when about 40% of the workforce ported union cards in their wallets. A half-century later, union membership has plummeted to 14%** and continues on a downward spiral as more and more work floats overseas. What happened??? How does organized labor, which seemed to have a tiger by the tail following World War II, now find itself hanging by a single claw for its survival? The simple answer is “third world economics”: workers in Mexico, Singapore, China, and Malaysia were more than willing to hop on a workbench and construct, assemble, or package products for substantially less wages than Americans; and - short of lining up walls and ships around our borders to block those products – the trend will continue. Eventually - Mexicans, Malaysians, and Chinese workers will also demand higher wages for their efforts, and the inevitable law of economics will search-out newer countries that will lure industry with the promise of a hungry workforce willing to take-on the effort for a lower standard of pay. Is this scenario a criminal conspiracy by big business to keep workers in a state of constant near-poverty? Nothing of the sort … it is precisely the functioning of the free market – which results in millions of new people around the world being introduced to a regular paycheck. The result for the consumer is lower prices at Wal-Mart, Home Depot, Walgreen's, and Best Buy. Americans can complain all they’d like about the jobs being lost overseas – but they do so while maintaining a lifestyle that includes an average of 4 radios, two televisions, and one computer ensconced in their homes. And these same consumers are working! The unemployment rate in the U.S. hovers at an astonishing low 4.7% with average hourly wages now at almost $17!* The truth is that Americans have never had it so good – even better than the 1950’s when unions were at their strongest. There is a huge downside – America is no longer industrial kingpin and has not been for years. The world's largest companies aren't solely headquartered in New York, Detroit, Chicago, Pittsburgh, or Los Angeles. They, too, are floating overseas. Whether we will verbalize it or not – America’s reign as economic king is now a memory - and the mantle is being fought for by a host of countries that may have realized organized labor would eventually be the goose killing its own golden eggs. *U.S. Department of Labor **www.howstuffworks.com
|
|
© Copyright 2005 by Paul Molloy |
|
|
You are visitor # |
|
|
|
|
|
This website created and maintained by Spring Rain Enterprises, Inexpensive but Very Effective Marketing for Small Business. |
