A Slightly Different Take

[airlineorphan]

mweiss,

There certainly are limits to outsourcing, but outsourcing is not the actual end in itself. The goal of corporations is to deregulate to labor market globally. The Global Village Idiots of Free Trade talk about the problem of "wage stickiness" meaning they they cannot simply put wages in a free fall when workers have some sort of organization that allows them to defend themselves. The outsourcing is generally designed to squeeze as many jobs out to lower wage markets as possible, and yes, that does tend to leave a lucky few.

I am sure you are aware that there used to be a much larger middle class in this country. A big part of the reason there was is that workers and their unions recognized that they had to fight.

Now it may surprise you, but I don't particularly see protectionism as a panacea. Instead, I think international labor solidarity with the goal of upward harmonization of wages rather than the chasing each other down the toilet dynamic that currently pervades the world.

Alluding to debates taking place in other threads, the marketplace certainly is having an impact upon workers' situation here at US Airways. Largely because of foolish strategic decisions made by a succession of management "teams" (as you have acknowledged). Now that management is pulling every dirty trick in the book to convince workers at US Airways to carry the burden of balancing the effects of managements' screwups while Siegel and crew give themselves bonuses for being so smart as to pass the buck like that.

But the fact that the marketplace has an impact, in fact a severe one, does not negate the need for workers at US Airways to fight back against what truly is a conscious effort to rob them blind (again, not an end in itself, but a means of passing the buck by making workers subsidize managements' screwups).

What I am watching closely is the situation at the company that is primarily defining the restructuring at most of the legacy carriers: Southwest. Workers at Southwest have been getting a bit more uppity of late. The mechanics threw out the Teamsters in favor of AMFA (lots of debate on this out there, but I regard this as a step towards greater militance) and the flight attendants are in the midst of probably the most vociferous contract conflicts the LUV airline has ever had. What happens with labor at Southwest will largely shape the outer bounds of opportunities for labor to defend itself and advance at the other airlines.

But I digress.

Have you ever read The Jungle, by Upton Sinclair? I think that it sums up the world we are moving into quite well.

-Airlineorphan

 

[mweiss]

The goal of corporations is to deregulate to labor market globally.

Which is not, in and of itself, a bad thing. Deregulation, within reasonable boundaries, tends to improve global productivity. Increasing global productivity raises the global standard of living. One thing making it so rocky right now is that the US has had a standard of living much higher than that of nations such as India. As a result, the global standard of living can rise even as the national standard of living falls.

I am sure you are aware that there used to be a much larger middle class in this country. A big part of the reason there was is that workers and their unions recognized that they had to fight.

It had an impact, to be sure. Nonetheless, you have to look at what was going on at the time. First and foremost, there was a global demand for products, but since the rest of the industrialized world had just been flattened by WWII, the US was in a highly advantageous position. With minimal competition from outside the US, high demand, and, yes, labor unions, things were mighty rosy.

I think international labor solidarity with the goal of upward harmonization of wages rather than the chasing each other down the toilet dynamic that currently pervades the world.

To argue for completely free wages versus your suggestion ends up being a more subtle discussion. Either approach would be substantially improved over the current situation.

But the fact that the marketplace has an impact, in fact a severe one, does not negate the need for workers at US Airways to fight back against what truly is a conscious effort to rob them blind

Perhaps. I guess I'd prefer to spend my energy looking for greener pastures than staying and fighting what even you seem to admit is a futile battle.

What I am watching closely is the situation at ... Southwest.

Yeah, me too. I'll be very interested to see where this leads for them.

Have you ever read The Jungle, by Upton Sinclair? I think that it sums up the world we are moving into quite well.

Indeed I have, as well as its nonfiction "sequel," of sorts, Fast Food Nation. You're correct in a sense; we appear to have been repeating the 1920s and 1930s. Interestingly, Sinclair was a member of the Socialist party. The Jungle was intended to be a book advocating a shift of the United States to socialism. He was rather upset that Teddy Roosevelt focused on the food supply issues instead of the broader political issues.

 

[ClueByFour]

Doctors, lawyers, brokers?

Construction?

Engineers?

Lawyers and brokers (or, anything that can absolutely can be handled without passing a particular bar and/or a particular securities license) is already going offshore. Paralegal shops are big in Mumbai.

Engineers are already screwed, and will continue to be so.

Lab work and medical imaging (and reading the results thereof) is already offshore.

I don't think the construction industry is in any danger, until there is no middle class left to afford housing.....

 

[RowUnderDCA]

What amazes me is that we seem to be debating in this election whether or not destroying the 'working middle class' is a good thing or not! WAKE UP, everbody.

Although, surely we might have to accept that we can't completely put the genie back in the bottle. So, we may have to deal with adjustments to our relative affluency. I'd just prefer that we DONT end up with 10 % of the population affording private jets and 90% at risk of being untreated TB carriers.

I guess we'll see in about 30 years.