Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: LindyBill who wrote (17377)	11/23/2003 9:27:11 AM
From: quehubo	Respond to of 793801

Lindy I grew up close to NYC in an area dominated by craft trade union households. I only lasted in a union environment about 1 year before I got tired of being asked why I worked so hard you get paid the same now matter how well you do. The last 20 years I have mostly managed union people in power plants and construction in the USA and in Colombia. I am very familiar with the negative aspects of unions and of the corporate greed that makes unions a necessary threat. Now I dont know what a fair wage is for a grocery clerk, but my guess is that somewhere between the union wages and Wallmart wages which is a pretty large gap from what I have seen. You pick up on very high compensation level as jobs being lost to China / India. The reality is this is an insignificant impact compared to the service and manufacturing jobs which are being moved. Why pay a US wage earner $45K a year when Chinese or Indian will do it for $3K a year? Education is great, but what careers are the displaced people going to be educated/trained to work in? From my experience in Industry automation is replacing jobs of people with marginal capabilities. So 1 person with good capabilities becomes a technician maintaining all of the automated equipment and the other 10 displaced people move on to Walmart. My concern is that Wallmart is a price setter in the market, they are in a position to set a fairer wage across the service industry. Sooner or later they will do it preemptively or be forced to. Either employers provide wages and medical insurance or the rest of us buy cheaper products but pay more taxes to support the uninsured.