Jan 12, 2023·edited Jan 12, 2023Liked by Robert Reich
"If we want more people to take jobs and we wish to live in a decent society, the answer is to pay people more." - well said. In addition, the executives should be forced by law to pay themselves less, a lot less - this would go a long way in reducing the absurd level of pay discrepancy.
The executives shipped millions of jobs to low-wage countries leaving those who lost their jobs in the U.S. in utter hopelessness. The money saved was pocketed by those same executives whose pay exploded as a result and the jobless millions were left to cope on their own as the government on every level failed to implement policies to help them so they were easy prey for Trump.
Our society is being devoured by money. Not the wages necessary for a decent job, but the wealthy hoarding the wealth for themselves and their family and friends. This doesn't end well in a capitalist economy dependent on ordinary people buying the products made by the rich.
The truth is that they want slaves! or as close to slavery as they can get it (lowest cost). Whether that be exploiting immigrants (who can't put a gun to an employer's head to 'take' a job) for cheaper labor in the US, outsourcing jobs for cheaper labor abroad, or automation (robots taking your job), the goal is to get as close as possible to paying no wage. The disguised attaches that Mr. Reich mentions (1. claiming we have a shortage of workers, (2. blaming the safety net, are both efforts to fool us into agreeing with them. So we will let them exploit more immigrants with low pay, outsource more jobs abroad, automate more jobs (robots flipping burgers, building cars, moving packages in a warehouse, and medical functions...) and to avoid having to do the right thing- treat employees fairly, and pay them fairly. They claim this is capitalism but it is not, because they have been able to control too many of the factors that are supposed to be checks and balances. They have control over the 'influence of EMPLOYEES and over the 'influence of GOVERNMENT'. Employees- they have effectively poisoned employee use of Unions, they have halted increases in minimum wage (via the government), they control our retirements (and gamble with our 401-Ks and Roth IRAs in the stock market to make them more wealthy; they also want total control and the additional wealth they could get from ending Social Security), they control our healthcare (prior to ObamaCare) that most still get healthcare from their employers, and they have us supporting cuts in taxes that give us crumbs while they get millions in relief while simultaneously taking revenue from safety-net and other programs that benefit the majority and taking funds from government agencies that would regulate their behavior. In addition, they have used their money to halt progress in congress, while using 'bought and paid for' conservative judges to set policy via the supreme court. And we continue to fall for this BS, just like those that continue to support business friendly policy so businesses can "trickle down" some crumbs.
fyi, you are so right about all of this. How do we combat the insanity? Americans are so brainwashed against unions which really could make life better for them. I know people who complain that the unions are worse than the employers and they spread the crap everywhere so any employees who are considering unions are convinced that unions are horrible, stealing their money (for dues), and giving workers nothing in return. I suspect there are a few unions that have gotten like that, but most are not and really do stand with and for workers. The corporations and businesses in general don't want that. They do want slaves and would be delighted to have people work for nearly nothing. Production has gone up significantly in the past 40 years or so, quite a lot, but salaries have not even begun to match that production increase. It is the workers who have made progress for this nation, but have not been given any credit for it, only bad working conditions if the employers can get away with it, and ignoring the needs of workers. Powell wants to put our country's economy into a recession so workers will be forced back to work for as low a wage as the corporations can get away with. Republicans are delighted because those in Congress and in state legislatures are rich and that will not harm them, not permanently, anyway. Workers need to unite and stand with and for workers if we are to keep our nation from recession. And, Powell either has to go or be negated by the Fed board. I wish some of them were caring people, but I am thinking not.
Well said fyiurban! It all goes back to when Citizens United was forced & when Pres Reagan was in office deregulating everything in the business world they could get away with. Stingy Rethugs & their so-called good for the country policies have done more harm to everyone without a million dollar bank Acct than they could possibly have imagined! So why do Evangelicals & rural folks think that the Repub Party is doing work to benefit them? How can they be educated or have their eyes opened to the harm the monopoly & capitalist favoring Party is doing to the country & ultimately NOT doing anything to benefit the people who support them?? I believe most rural poor & working class people in my state of KY vote Repub for every office without giving it a second thought bec their parents always voted Repub & they know that our state Legislature has been 90% Repub for decades! They must feel they have to be part of the majority.
From its founding, a major share of the wealth built by this country's economy was fueled by slave labor, whether indentured European servants or stolen Africans, and the labor of exploited immigrants and women. Furthermore, there exists the seemingly universal "business class" belief that any duties not performed by the owners of capital is mindless, devoid of value and should be compensated as cheaply as possible. That mindset convinces a majority of business owners that they are the only market participants who should reap increasing benefits from a growing economy.
If prices for their products and services should rise and lift profits, it's the righteous working of capitalism and testament to their business acumen. If at any time these same forces cause wages to rise for the working people, whose efforts turn the gears of the economy, cries of "labor shortages" and "inflationary wage cycles" hit the news. Just like in the 2008 financial crisis, the well-heeled declare "capitalism for the poor and socialism for the wealthy." They then leverage their years of lobbying dollars, moving public policy to cushion their falls with the bodies, and social safety nets, of poor to middle class people during impending downturns.
To echo Professor Reich, if workers aren't applying, that's simple economics: you haven't raised your salary offer high enough to hit the strike price. If you want to draw applicants, either from their homes, another employer or industry, to work for you, your offer must improve. If capitalism's precepts are good enough for working people, why aren't they good enough for the industrial titans?
C. Jacobs, I really liked your final statement. I think it sums up a major part of our capitalist dilemma. "If capitalism's precepts are good enough for working people, why aren't they good enough for the industrial titans?" It seems that corporations et al just make things up as they go along to give themselves whatever type of advantage they want (think they deserve). When they don't get all they want, they cry to the government that they deserve more and should be given it through tax breaks or direct bail-outs. The government comes through for them if they are wealthy and white enough. That is not exactly the "free market" they claim to embrace. It sounds a lot like welfare to me, welfare for folks who don't actually need it and whine about giving it to those who actually do.
You are correct. we fall for it because politics and the public discourse is not based on rational thinking. It is based on emotional connections: belonging to my 'tribe'; validating my emotional grievances; feeling disempowered; fear of the 'other', be it women, race, gender bias, geography, political persuasion; keeping the pattern taught early by parents; listening to my 'priest'; ignorance allowing slogans to substitute for thought; and more. All this with a background of sustained propaganda regarding capitalism and socialism as misunderstood economic theories. So if you want to see change, the political messaging has to address these factors and there need to be empowerment processes throughout the society. good luck with that.
Wow! Lola, you have really addressed the major problems with reaching people with the truth about our economy, jobs, and working conditions and wages. I know a lot of people like me wonder why people keep voting against their best interest, but if they are told women, Black, people, immigrants, or some other group is coming for their jobs, that old tripe still works. The clans never do look to see who is really causing their problems, not even identifying themselves, so they don't see that they are pawns and unless they snap out of their tribal cage, things won't get better for them, and it isn't other groups coming after their jobs, it is the rich corporations making their work harder and paying less in real money than people were paid 40 years ago for the same job.
If they seek to divide us, we know one of the solutions is Unity=power-in-numbers (via democracy, via unions, via collective action, via pooling our resources, via capitalizing on our diversity of skills and experiences so there is someone that is strong, where I am weak). They seek to lie, Omit and misinform, so another solution is to keep our lines of dialogue open, in an effort to expose the lies and misinformation... a lie, unchallenged, becomes the truth to someone (this goes for all the "tough" conversations about the things/issues they use to divide us- race, gender, sexual orientation, class, religion, education/history, politics, etc.) This can be challenging, but if you can help one person and then that person helps another, etc, etc., progress can be made. NOW is the time to boycott and or create a competing business that does the right thing... If we lose the safety net or democracy, boycotts/protests will require major sacrifices- one's livelihood or even ones life (if you don't work, you don't eat!).
I agree. Executive salaries and bonuses should be stopped immediately! Absurd level of pay discrepancies indeed!!! I’ve never seen an executive in the biopharma industry earn his (usually male) keep.
Maria, yes, then those corporations used and abused the foreign workers to make stuff we Americans wanted, many dying and injured just so those corporations wouldn't have to install decent working conditions and preyed on poor people desperate for jobs paying almost nothing, that could help them feed their families. That was going on here with the jobs that were left, but we did have a few laws to keep it in check. Executives get to their high level because they truly believe they are better than everyone else and want to be paid more than anyone else. It is, as you say, unacceptable! There should be a cap on CEO salaries/packages. Above a certain level, they should pay very high percentages in taxes. It won't make them poor and not much less rich, but it would be more fair. I think that is true of everyone earning above say, 25 million dollars, no matter who they work for. This needs to be fixed. Unfortunately, with Republicans ruling the House (with a 6 vote margin) and Mitch McConnell crying filibuster at every turn with no requirements to actually take the floor and stand for something, nothing is going to happen. We need to find ways to get more Democrats out to vote despite the crazy voter suppression laws passed in red states and the anti-voting crap approved by our Supreme Court conservative "justices."
Interesting. Recently I took the time to read the annual report of a company in which I have a few shares. This is the company most of my family has worked at and my summer jobs there paid for college. I note that in the coming year the CEO will make up to $12 M. I say up to, since much of that is bonuses and stock options that are valuable only if the planets align just so. In actual promised cash it’s around $900k, a lot of money but as the median worker there makes about $65k the ratio is around 13x the median. I’ll be watching the next annual to see how he did; the paper products business isn’t what it once was and I will regard success as keeping our multiple plants open.
Charles Dickens must be turning in his grave to see the richest country in the world exploit its working class in the same way the UK did in the 19th century. Sadly, the USA is regressing and this is another example of the imminent decline of the American empire .... The greed of US corporations knows no bounds !!
Eh, I wouldn't go THAT far, Erin. Are things very, very bad now? Sure. But with the cruel, heartless boomers dying out and the younger generations voting nearly 100% PROGRESSive, I feel we are in for some fun changes soon.
Your post is horrifyingly ageist. Do you really expect that all boomers feel and act the same way? It’s just like racism. Shame on you. Have you been arrested for civil disobedience yet? I have. I also got a bill turned into law, by initiative petition. What have you done?
Being a Baby Boomer myself, we then lived in an era of fighting for the highest good of humankind, and the environment.
Many of us put our lives on the line to try to change the Moral Compass of the country, and the world.
Apathy was not a word in our vocabulary, but we should not discount the ideas and works of the millennials.
Both generations may have different methodologies in the goals of bringing back the moral compass of our nation back to center.
We all know that an unexamined life is not worth living, and many of the millennials are also working for change as much as we “Relics of the 60’s”also did, but now we have many different types of causes, passions, and much of our media, and the advent of social media has placed a new type of obstacle,which has allowed us to be much less in touch with who/what are the truths during these turbulent times.
That in itself throws a huge glitch in how we move forward by working together as a collective and cohesive force.
I believe that “intention” is what rules over any of our actions.
As naive as I may sound, trust me, am anything but that
I am one of those cruel heartless boomers, and as far as I’m concerned you can drop dead too, you arrogant MF. 100% progressive.? 🐄 💩 What % even got motivated enough to show up?
You sound like you're bitter as a result of some bad luck. Blaming scores of others won't fix what's ailing you. Try opening your mind a little farther, and maybe therapy.
Oh Daniel, I hope you are right! The sad thing for me is how little informed so many of the young people I know are. And now, some school districts are "forbidding" teachers to even mention political topics. I know I ignored that all the time, but I also know most teachers won't take the chance to buck the system. Courage is not in abundance mostly because Republicans rule a bunch of school districts just like they do our House of Representatives and Supreme Court. Republican ignorance of life beyond what they are personally experiencing is destructive, but what we have, just watch the House Circus!
Thank you, Dr. Reich. I agree with your whole analysis of our current situation and of what needs to be done to improve our situation.
The views of the Republicans consider only portions of the whole story, the portions that fit the defective 'solutions' they propose. And their proposals are all designed to ultimately serve the greed of those who already have more than they realistically need, all of which they have gained at great cost to all the rest of us.
I listened to some of the Faux News Hannity and McCarthy show last night. It was beyond belief and one of the most disgusting displays I've seen in a long time. Repubs are so despicable that I honestly hate them. I never thought I'd catch myself thinking and feeling that way, but that's where it's gone. I couldn't even watch it all. We are in for a horrendous 2 years. What is wrong with this country.
Listening to lies is the problem. As a Bible student, it is interesting to note that this is the Original Problem: Eve listened to (and believed) a lie, and Adam, although “not deceived,” weakly went along with it for his own selfish reason. Talk about coming full circle! We are ending where we began. (Gen 3:1-5, 1 Tim 2:14)
This is not good at all, because, if you notice, where we eventually ended up - after Adam and Eve were kicked out of the Garden of Eden - was with Noah and the Flood, i.e., the destruction of the vast majority of the human population and life on Earth as it was previously known. A terrifying scenario, but really, that’s sure where it looks like we’re headed, again. Maybe those Bible stories aren’t so quaint after all.
As you will note, some like to obfuscate with mysticism and pseudoscience. But we aren’t going to repeat the previous path, of Flood etc. The reason God didn’t crush the rebellion by force, that would have ended humankind, and count as a failure of his work. So He decided to give us the freedom (from Him) that we chose, to prove that it would lead to disaster. There is no need to do it twice. The point has been proven to any honest observer. Now at the brink, the next step is to rescue those who have admitted God was right and clear the earth of those who stubbornly keep trying to prove the lie. This is our home, and God will see it made right. He will not be defeated.
(The Flood story illustrates that God can and will interfere when things get too perilous, but for the most part he is hands-off other than to protect his interests. The next intervention will use a different method, and no, the planet will not be burned up. He will not allow his creation to be destroyed. That too would be a defeat.)
People automatically blame God for everything because that is what most religion teaches. But it is enough that we are exposed to whatever the natural world in its indifference can throw at us. That is the whole point. God knows we won't make it (long term) without his help, but we bought the lie that we'd be fine on our own. Covid was NOT from God. In fact he very rarely brings anything. Storms, earthquakes, whatever-- almost all natural. He is not "managing" the world, nor anyone's life. He only acts to keep his overarching purpose (to prove the Deceiver wrong, and in the end rescue humble people who have tried to be good*) from being derailed. Which includes a degree of protection (not absolute) for those who respect him. Which is a lot fewer than you would think based on pious claims, since a lot of religion is a cover for hypocrisy.
*most of whom are presently dead (we are not immortal, as most religions teach) but that is not a problem for God. He can restore them to life when it is time for that.
I’m not worried at all about what god is or isn’t….. I think that many of the Biblical stories are metaphors for human experience. And our human hubris, or human proclivity to be greedy, to be obstinate, to deceive, to lie, to be power hungry, etc., etc., leads to great imbalances in society and in nature. We can verify this by simply looking at our world, and the destruction we’ve created. Not some g/God. Us. We do harm to ourselves; we can do good to ourselves and to the planet, as well. I don’t care what god/God is or isn’t. I do think that these stories, written by PEOPLE, as in, human beings, can be very instructive as to how we can make our own lives, individually and collectively, easier, or harder, on ourselves. It’s too bad that religious literature has gotten such a bad wrap.
Man, born of woman, comes into the world in pain and from the moment of conception begins to die.... on the other hand science says we live in multiple dimensions but are not able to experience more than one. Math and physics professors are hard at work on "new math" to give us tools that may offer a portal to a time tunnel..... So "original sin" may be obsolete and no longer deemed original.
Charlie, I understand the feeling. Even just hearing small snippets of the stuff those folks say when it is played on the mainstream media or MSNBC is nauseating. I find them to be users, beyond insincere, OK, liars and gaslighters. They honestly know what they are doing and love seeing what kind of havoc they can cause by their words. Steve Bannon is a criminal who just keeps pumping out the nonsense and people who crave power all over the world are listening and taking advice. Why that fool isn't in jail, I haven't figured out. He was supposed to be sentenced for contempt of Congress but I have heard no sign of anything being done about that, so he lies on and has a huge audience. We all should be asking ourselves how there are so many haters out there in our nation who cling to the crap those Republicans and their media spew every day and if there is any way to reach/stop them. It is disgusting!
it's predictable that corporations and GQP are hand-in-hand in this dystopian move to punish the citizenry for simply being alive and to impose austerity upon everyone who isn't uber-wealthy. it's all about controlling the masses. modern slavery.
the problem that the corporations and ultra-wealthy haven't yet solved is how to enjoy all the benefits that a modern society offers -- top-notch healthcare, scientific advances, transport, food, housing and its maintenance, interesting books and the various gadgetry that make life so fun -- whilst denying all those things to the rest of us. according to their plan, we are supposed to happily build, repair, maintain and provide all the amenities, all the everything, that the elites have and want, we are supposed to magically obtain the education and skills and tools necessary to accomplish these tasks, but after they take what they want from us, we are supposed to disappear into our hovels and remain out of sight until they require us to appear and to take care of >them< .
i look with suspicion at robots: on one hand, i think they are fun and interesting, but on the other hand, they are the new slave class of the 2030s and 2040s, whilst we, the deposed slave class, will all be collateral damage sacrificed upon the altar of absolute control and obscene profits.
who will these people destroy after we are all gone? each other.
"They took our jobs" could apply to robots and immigrants equally - but, in theory, we're not really short of either (the root of the problem is - as suggested - something to do with control; innovation w.r.t. means of employment, e.g. temping, contracting, "apps", etc. all but entirely obviates risk for the employer - so how can the balance of capital & profit motive be on the corporation side of the equation, i.e. without employment and pay increasing?)
PS: Perhaps the shadow of actual slavery casts too long a shadow on the political system to see dysfunction precluded? (Congressional districts in the Rio Grande valley voting for Freedom Caucus representatives seems... odd.)
"They are taking our jobs" has been applied to women, black ppl (former slaves), and immigrants or all kinds. The truth is that they want slaves! or as close to slavery as they can get it (lowest cost). Whether that be exploiting immigrants (who can't put a gun to an employer's head to 'take' a job) for cheaper labor in the US, outsourcing jobs for cheaper labor abroad, or automation (robots taking your job), the goal is to get as close as possible to paying no wage. The disguised attaches that Mr. Reich mentions (1. claiming we have a shortage of workers, (2. blaming the safety net, are both efforts to fool us into agreeing with them. So we will let them exploit more immigrants with low pay, outsource more jobs abroad, automate more jobs (robots flipping burgers, building cars, moving packages in a warehouse, and medical functions...) and to avoid having to do the right- treat employees fairly, and pay them fairly. They claim this is capitalism but it is not, because they have been able to control too many of the factors that are supposed to be checks and balances. They have control over the influence of EMPLOYEES and over the influence of GOVERNMENT. Employees- they have effectively poisoned employee use of Unions, they have halted increases in minimum wage (via the government), they control our retirements (and gamble with our 401-Ks and Roth RAs in the stock market to make them more wealthy), they control our healthcare (prior to ObamaCare) that most still get healthcare from and they have us supporting cuts in taxes that give us crumbs while they get millions in relief while simultaneously taking revenue from safety-net and other programs that benefit the majority and taking funds from government agencies that would regulate their behavior. In addition, they have used their money to halt progress in congress, while using 'bought and paid for' conservative judges to set policy via the supreme court. And we continue to fall for this BS, just like those that continue to support business friendly policy so businesses can "trickle down" some crumbs.
looking through comments affixed to this piece, i see you've got quite A Thing for immigrants and immigration in general. what's the dealio? did you wake up on the wrong side of the ocean to america?
I may not have the wording exact, but Chief Sitting Bull was quoted as saying "The white man can make anything, but he doesn't know how to distribute it."
We know that in a capitalist system that consumers only get what they can afford to buy. Otherwise, goods given to consumers who can't afford them is called "charity".
Perhaps Chief Sitting Bull had a kinder, more generous system, making sure everyone had their basic needs met.
Another thing to add to the woes of the working class, housing costs. If you aren't bringing in a paycheck to cover your basic needs [and in today's society working in any job requires 1. reliable transportation 2: a permanent address 3: a working phone 4: enough nutrition to get through the day 5. great health.] And that is just to get hired. Once hired you'd better hope you don't get colds,. covid, flu, or any other disease. Most good employment does not allow the accumulation of sick or vacation days in the first six months. And that is good companies. The average job now you're lucky if you ever get sick leave or vacation. Some businesses, in addition to lousy pay even make their workers stay on the job New Year's Day, July 4, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. They don't even recognize the other holidays.
Statistics show that 15% of the population does not have the intellectual capacity to take care of themselves. The best they can do is "sheltered" work. In some parts of the country, environmental factors aggravate and exacerbate that problem. As a society, we should give priority to helping the least able among us.
Thank you for that statistic, Daniel. I agree we must help those in present day society, who are unable to care for themselves, including the elderly in various stages of dementia. The sheltered workshops for the younger "mentally handicapped" work pretty well. The workers are protected from abuse by the public, at the same time they are able to feel pride in themselves by 'making a living'. At both ends of the age spectrum, they cannot live alone for 2 reasons, First they are unable to care for themselves, especially the elderly who may not even be able to dress and attend to their own hygiene. Second because a certain segment of society takes pleasure in abusing those who cannot defend themselves. At this time, unfortunately, their well being depends a lot on the State in which they live, and even in the better States, MONEY. The cost of their care is high and, especially when the Federal government is involved, their idea of the cost of living is some where in the 1950's. Example: in 1974 the cost of living for one elder citizen was set at $600/month. In 2019, guess what? the cost of living for a single elderly citizen was set at $600 per month. And like you,
Daniel and J. Nol, I have worked with these disadvantaged persons from 1973 to 2021. I now live in a 'Senior Independent Living' apartment complex where we have dozens of persons with what are euphemistically called 'memory problems' political speak for demented.
Daniel, I had also heard one young woman who was homeless. She was working, but young and on her own. After over a year being homeless, she finally saved enough to pay all the up front costs for a place to live. She said, “If you don’t have a mental health problem when you first become homeless, you will by the time you’ve been homeless for 2 years.“
The sheltered workplace used to be the military. But with the “professionalization” of the military over the past 40 or so years, Forrest Gump is no longer welcome in the ranks of the army. The USA needs a new sheltered workplace such as the old Civilian Conservation Corps.
Hi Stan, in California (at least until 2003 that I can attest to) we have had very efficient and effective, "sheltered workshop" NGO's". The one with which I was most familiar was in Sacramento County and they provided food service to schools and some businesses. Using the 'mentally challenged' to cook, serve, take payment and give change as needed. They had two responsible unchallenged adults to oversee that all was done correctly and the young adults providing the services were respected and never physically nor emotionally abused. In addition to food services, they provided teams of those in their care to businesses, for repetative tasks, and even for agricultural labor. Obviously, these were NOT for profit organizations and although I hope they are still functioning, I no longer have contact. If they have had to compete with an able minded work force due to Corporate greed they are probably on the losing end of the stick
When I read “sheltered work,” I thought, at first, you were referring to people who can only work in offices. LOL! How many Americans would be “self-sufficient” if they had to build their own shelter, grow their own food, and can enough for the winter? Not many. The kinds of work in the US today that people are paid for and paid well for, hence allowing them to be “self-sufficient” are highly dependent on interdependence.
It’s unfortunate that a person’s worth and whether or not they make meaningful contributions to society are so often conflated with how much money they have or make. It is only with such beliefs that Republicans can aim to do away with Medicare, Social Security, and all of the rest of America’s very meager social safety nets.
If a person’s worth is primarily or only tied to how much they “earn” or have, people, in particular Republicans, can make all kinds of justifications for disposing of people who aren’t “earning their keep.” Everybody either does or can contribute some meaningful and important good to society, even if it is something intangible that cannot be easily commoditized or it is a contribution that is simply taken for granted and not paid. The real question, to me is, when are highly paid, highly destructive people going to finally come around and contribute some meaningful good to society?
Caroline, you’ve put your finger on a big problem: people who are destructive shouldn’t be highly paid. I’m still struggling with the idea that some people should be paid more than others. The happiest people I know are those whose work is “in line with the grain” of their personality. There are people who do what they do because it comes naturally; they would persist in their line of work no matter what the wages. Has anyone done a serious study of this topic? I guess I’m a socialist at heart.
Rather paternalistic viewpoint and a shining example of "coastal elitism" and smug arrogance. I understand what you are saying but it's exactly the type of tweet that Faux News would run with
What? There are those among us who can't support themselves, so don't we have an obligation as a society to provide them what they need? How is that "coastal elitism"? Have you ever visited a sheltered workshop, or worked with developmentally delayed adults who really can't take care of themselves? I have.
I worked for DOL and before that SSA and wrote many papers on the subject had hundreds of expert witnesses testify in my hearings, was a member of ACUS, and before even that I gave discharges when I was in the military after my Vietnam service when we had "Project 100,000." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_100,000
When I was at DOL, vocational witnesses tried to place injured workers, and much of what I say is contained in Appendix A, to the Department of Labor, Dictionary of Occupational Titles (1991) still used by the experts.
Once upon a time I represented school districts and was involved in litigation and the establishment of special programs under the predecessor to IDEA, the Handicap Act of 1973. In worked on the child regulations for disability for SSA. I stay current through professional organizations. I used to be a member of ACUS, was past chair of a division of the American Bar Association, past president of some other organizations.
I held hearings in places like Appalachia, Mississippi Delta, Central Valley of California, where I met these folks "up close and personal".
I was also asked to be a "parliamentarian" by subagencies of DOL like OSHA. I did not make policy but have a handle on it.
IMHO the best "charity" in the US is SSA. I'm an advocate for SSI.
That is an impressive CV and one you should be proud of. I'm perplexed by the FU introduction; it does not further your premise. I still stand by my statement that Faux News would gleefully run your comment on their chyron and the comment is paternalistic. The average Rethuglican at that metaphorical "everymans" diner would not disagree.
Thank you for pointing out how many of the "needier" people vote against their own best interest. They have not seen the changes in the Republican Party's interest away from the Country as a whole, to the wealthy first and foremost.
That is exacerbated if you have children! more cost for housing, food and health! What if they get sick and you have to take off to get them to the doctor, or because they can't go to school or to daycare (if you can afford it!)?
The solution is simple. We just return to feudalism, sponsored by the church. We'll be grateful for whatever trickles down, and our children can learn trades as indentured servants. Might be a little tough on people of color, of course, because they'll face discrimination, but they have bootstraps, right? It's Republican Disneyland! And Barrett, Alito, Kavanaugh, Thomas, and Gorsuch get to make all the rules!
Normally I like your comments Daniel. This one is founded in ignorance and rumor. Please research the actual faith before baselessly disparaging it in a comment meant to be funny.
By George, I think you've got it! As to the bootstrap theory - the reality is that it's impossible to life oneself up by one's own bootstraps. That defies gravity.
A company owned by an American oligarch could probably be thought a feudal realm: between the consideration afforded to the "founders" (really their equity) & the outsized interest of the early employees and investors there'd be *more than enough* reason to simply conflate 'company' & 'country' ("What's good for General Motors ..." - and no differently Chevron, Microsoft, etc. etc. etc.)...
PS: Why would you bend an ear to the church? This is America!
I vaguely remember George W. Bush advocating for, and I think getting, funding for "faith based" charities. It always seemed a bad idea to me for a lot of reasons. The "separation of Church and State" is a really good practice for a lot of reasons. There is nothing stopping any religion from starting their own "charity" and funding it themselves, a few actually do that. Churches always seem to want more government funding for their religious things, but then turn around and claim "freedom of religion" to run their charities however they please. Everybody should be so fortunate. Maybe there wouldn't be such great need for "charities" if regular people had the lawyers and connections to work the system as well as Churches do.
Clearly no sarcasm in saying that - once the 2000 election was stolen - America became its own kind of Salvation Army (saving Afghanistan, then Iraq, then ...)
... but having actually heard that one of the Bush family's favorite charities is the very same it probably can't prove to be sarcasm (and especially in the case of the whole enterprise ultimately having been dedicated to *their* salvation, of all things).
> = (
PS: The question was more meant to pertain to the lord of the aforementioned feudal realm (i.e. via his corporate vassal)... but "eh".
This situation is also cruel to those still in the workforce who are under great pressure to carry heavier burdens in wildly understaffed and often toxic work environments. Labor shortage is felt every day by those still stuck in the corporate grinder. Corporations don’t “feel” the pains of the “shortage” they gripe about, they benefit from it and nurture it.
Hits hardest at "entry level" jobs where employees are fungible. Those jobs can be learned in one day and most require "heavy" work. A huge proportion are in "casual" labor. .
For example. Nursing schools from graduate to vocational crank out thousands of new nurses yet every level of healthcare remains "understaffed." Patients lay unattended for hours with beeping monitors and unanswered call lights. Because the nurses are all temps and either don't know what to do or have no motivation to. Why. Because temps get sometimes double the hourly pay of an employed nurse, and they can choose their hours. So the Masters of Healthcare pay more and get less and pass it on to you. G-d bless the brave nurses in NYC who are striking to give the good care for good wages they went to school for.
Add to those facts that health care systems in the US are private companies that require a healthy profit level to maintain their investor's interest, hence the perversion of motive from top down has NOTHING to do with how patients feel at all or even the nurses who care for them for that matter ! Just squash anything that reeks of higher costs is the primary motivation of any corporation !
Our for-profit health "care" system has resulted in over 500,000 personal bankruptcies a year due to medical bills, one-third of GoFundMe and other crowdfunding campaigns being appeals to help someone pay off medical expenses, and so-called feel-good stories about employees giving up their paid sick leave days to a coworker who needs cancer treatment and a high school robotics club assembling a special wheelchair for a special-needs child because his family's insurance company is too greedy and selfish to pay even one nickel for a $20,000 wheelchair.
I don't think DOL BLS and the Fed have the whole story. IMHO many employers pay workers "under the table" and effects from price fixing and price gouging undermine the cost of doing business for legitimate employers.
Economists estimate that 18 percent to 19 percent of income nationwide is not reported to the Internal Revenue Service.. IMHO side hustling and the gig economy are becoming the new American dream, with nearly 70 million Americans earning cash under the table.
Evading taxes is a crime.
Fed policy is sending us into a recession. It's worse for retired people living on a fixed income than it is for the general public.
Mmm... 'They Don't Represent Us' in reverse? (The Christian/Republican representatives that they purcha - uh - "fund"... are "tough on crime", want to "protect our borders", believe in "national security", etc. etc. - and fail to support even a strong dollar policy, to say nothing of open immigration!)
Clearly the math doesn't add up - but maybe that's true for the employers who traded prosperity for Trump Tax Cuts? (The only folks who can't report their income are the folks who can't get paid what they're worth because of failed immigration policies!)
100% correct. My small business (15 employees) competes with fast food for employees. The only way we get people in the door is a bit more money and paid benefits. It's amazing how many small businesses won't offer PAID benefits.
"We all do better when we all do better." Paul Wellstone
All of what was said here is obvious. Mr. Reich has, as usual, described the situation in terms that are accessible and cogent. But something keeps eating at me. In order to have a decent society, don't we have to be a decent society to begin with? Sometimes we get close, but currently we are not. Our checkered past provides us with clues as to why this might be the case. We, like many of the civilizations that preceded us, have an uneasy relationship with things like kindness, commonsense, egalitarianism. In short, we are severely limited by a persistent culture of selfishness, greed, violence, and intolerance. This culture "worked" for a time (if you could actually call it that). But that time is way past. Ultimately the solution to this mess is not going to come from current politics, religion, economics, science or technology. It will have to be a sea change in the way we see the world and our place in it. The previously mentioned things will then follow in good order. What we need, in short, is a modern axial age. All of the things that Mr. Reich has mentioned are obvious, good and sound, But without a social context decent enough to recognize and implement these very good recommendations the effect will be like planting wheat on a concrete sidewalk.
Sorry for the quibble, but Jesus predated the socialists and though he might have influenced modern socialism his message had a different perspective and motivation. His message was highly influenced by a Jewish pre-rabbinic apocalyptic movement. That movement believed that, within the life spans of its followers, God would come with an army of angels and end not only the the Roman occupation, but time itself.
Most of what you think was socialism was simply the idea that it was pointless to cling to worldly possessions when the world was going to be swept away for the coming of the Mashiach (Messiah) and the (arguably socialist from a modern perspective) kingdom of God.
Socialism got it's start in the 19th century. And though some of it's founding ideas are to be found in ancient and medieval sources it is a 19th - 21st century movement. There was, is, a Christian Socialist movement however. It got it's start in the early 19th century as well. It's based on both biblical sources as well as the thought that developed in modernity.
Thanks for the update! I was also thinking about the reference in the Book of Acts that describes the earliest Christians as sharing all their worldly possessions with one another — as you point out, waiting for the Kingdom of Heaven to arrive. There’s also the parable of the vineyard, in which workers who start late in the day are paid the same as those who started working in the morning, a situation that Jesus seemed satisfied with.
Taking and holding power requires a fairly abnormal perspective. Tyrants are not normal people. That said, theoretically a Democracy would be a foil to such personalities. History suggests otherwise.
It's not a labor shortage but a productivity deficit caused by the American labor model.
If the "the corporate Republican argument" were correct then the mill worker economies of Northern England in the 1800s into the arly 1900s should be the role models of how to run an economy. Work people to death, keep them in poverty, and then replace them with new talent generated by a lack of birth control.
Looking at today's realities in Northern England might leave a different impression. The region has gone from struggle to struggle to get past the legacy of the mill works economy when the textile world moved on to Asia. Rather than a growing population and prosperity it is de-populating as jobs and industries have moved to Asia.
We can do better! Why not a 4-day work week? Why not give people sufficient time off to rest, build relationships, and enage in life long learning?
Can we do better? The modern loom - the one which weaves colorful dreams in the palm of your hand - also requires labor: note the spiraling salaries (and ever-shorter working lives) which accompany working conditions that exhaust creative talent & create an entire class of people who are impoverished not only spiritually but democratically. We ape their success: all the great technologists are entrepreneurs; "founders".
Get rich quick? Die trying; nothing could be more American.
PS: Our system reflects a productivity deficit because our mentality is deficient, i.e. in viewing labor as a resource to exploit (why does Lina Khan have to do away with NDAs for an industry which offers so much in terms of "productivity" - sans unions, collective bargaining, & any other labor market innovations?). Should it come as a surprise that the political system is similarly exploited (e.g. by the companies at the forefront of the productivity, i.e. Uber & Lyft)?
Labor as a "resource" is a kind way to describe a mentality.
I can vividly recall being in an investor call with top management (I worked in IR at one time) when the COO commented that employees are just another "commodity" that could be bought and sold. The business leader came from one of the very top tier investment banks. His views were common of his peers. In his mind, employees were on par with the ketchup in the canteen. Just another commodity.
A lot of the reports that there is a shortage is a pretext to get temporary foreign workers.
I heard H1B visa cases. Companies would allege they could not find qualified US workers. I'm sure there are scams. People like Donald J Trump hire temporary visa workers on his properties to displace US workers.
At least one, to be sure ('Marcia Poole' would corroborate that) - though the bigger scam is tying the immigration status to a given employer (no differently than health insurance pre-A.C.A.)...
"Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed. This world in arms is not spending money alone. It is spending the sweat of its laborers, the genius of its scientists, the hopes of its children. The cost of one modern heavy bomber is this: a modern brick school in more than 30 cities. It is two electric power plants, each serving a town of 60,000 population. It is two fine, fully equipped hospitals. It is some fifty miles of concrete pavement. We pay for a single fighter plane with a half million bushels of wheat. We pay for a single destroyer with new homes that could have housed more than 8,000 people." --President Dwight D. Eisenhower, April 16, 1953, speaking to the American Society of Newspaper Editors at the Statler Hotel in Washington.
I agree one hundred percent. What if employers were taxed higher for paying employees below a living wage? For example, let's take a look at Walmart.
Walmart benefits by paying employees low wages. Often, the wages are so low that employees must get SNAP (formerly food stamps) to survive. Well then, who pays when employers like Walmart do not pay a living wage? The government pays and tax payers pick up the tab.
I think it's fair to say that the government and society have a vested interest that workers are healthy and self-sufficient. Government and society have a vested interest that employers pay a living wage so public assistance is not needed. So why not reward employers who pay their employees a living with a lower tax rate?
Perhaps a corporation's tax rate should be tied to the percentage of their employees needing public assistance, or earning a living wage?
It seems that incentivizing a living wage with a lower tax rate could make a win-win-win. Workers would benefit by making more and not needing public assistance. Businesses would pay a lower tax rate, creating lower worker turnover and more trained employees. The government and society would benefit by having fewer people and families needing public assistance. I don't know, but incentivizing a living wage with a lower tax rate seems like good solution for workers, employers and tax payers.
Before the Pandemic, I had an interesting chat with a Walmart manager on the day before Thanksgiving. On this day, the line for a cashier (and robot cashiers) was half way to the back of the store. It was very frustrating. Customers were angry. I decided to speak with a manager. In a polite manner, I pointed to the long line and asked, "why would Walmart do this to their customers? Some won't come back. It's the day before Thanksgiving. You had to know that this would be a busy day. Why are only three lanes open?
The manager explained that he didn't have enough workers. He said they even dropped the no smoking weed requirement, and they still couldn't get enough employees. Well then, why could they still need more employees, pray tell?
Having been in the fight for a living wage for several years, I asked the manager, "what is the starting pay?" He said $11.50/hr, as I recall. I replied, "Well there you go. This is Metropolitan DC. It's an expensive area. A living wage is at least $15/hr." The manager looked at me with a sad look, paused for moment, and nodded in agreement.
It was a cordial chat. I thanked him for his time. He thanked me for my patience. We wished each other a happy Thanksgiving. Indeed, paying workers more would solve the so-called worker shortage.
People always use WalMart as an example. The Disney theme parks are the same. Many of their employees qualify for assistance such as food stamps. No one talks about this, though, because they are such a popular cultural icon. Corporate greed is out of control.
Well said. I have had the same conversation with chain store managers, grocery store managers, and others- the folks upstairs won't hear it, but they know the solution as well as we do.
Here's a question. How do people who don't work pay their bills? From my experience, unemployment benefits never came close to substituting for even the worst paying jobs. It runs out after 26 weeks here in Georgia, and that wasn't usually enough time to find a decent job. Maybe things have changed since I was in the job market, but I'm sure most people, even the lazy slobs Robert referenced have to work at least one job, or risk losing everything and finding themselves living on 2nd Ave. in a tent. However, there is something severely amiss with the world economy. I know it's true that many business owners have trouble filling jobs, but I'm sure if the job paid enough, there would be resumes arriving en masse. I ran some businesses where it was difficult to find good workers back in the 90's, but I promise that was due to my bosses cheap pay schedules. Try running a business when you know you can't pay your help enough. Anyway, there are many major problems afflicting the economy. We all know what they are. I paid $5.08 for a dozen generic eggs at Walmart here in Georgia. There's something really wrong, and it's not all the fault of the Avian flu. I'm getting really concerned now. I don't think there's anything President Biden can do because one would think he would have already done it. It's not like he doesn't want to fix it. I'm thinking in terms of price controls. We already have shortages. We just can't let the business leaders raise prices whenever they feel some slight pressure. Prices have gone up so much they will never return to pre Covid levels. That sort of thing never happens. We had better get a grip very, very soon, or the country and the world will be up the creek without a paddle.
We have more homeless than ever, so many have lost everything, and that's a situation very difficult to climb out of without help (no address, no Internet, etc.). Some probably stay with relatives or friends, maybe provide childcare and/or eldercare in return for room and board. Some scrape by, maybe because the family is down to one income are able to get some social services, however inadequate. If families get along, they probably keep squeezing more and more people into the available space.
See my comments about "under the table." Go to the parking lot at Home Depot. All the people standing around are probably waiting to "catch a break" with some employer who will provide some pay "under the table."
There have always been those who work under the table, but they aren't a significant part of the work force. Everybody has cheated on unemployment at one time or another. They caught me one time, but all they did was embarrass me and make me pay the state back some money. They didn't take my remaining benefits away but they could have. I promise trying to make it on benefits alone is a guaranteed oneway ticket to the poor house.
When they closed the Chrysler assembly plant in Newark, DE, Governor Pete DuPont (yes, those DuPonts) had a mobile unemployment office set up across the street.
It was suggested that a new campaign slogan would be “vote Republican, and get an unemployment office where YOU used to work.”
Mr. DuPont, although he was a very popular governor, was a typical conservative Repub who wanted to end Social Security, lower taxes and reduce government spending. He was for drug testing high school students and if they failed, they would lose their drivers' licenses', and other popular items like that. He was not a popular presidential candidate in 1988. lol
That’s the guy. Pierre S. “Pete Sixpack”DuPont de Nemours IV. Born with a silver trust fund in his mouth. The last King of Delaware. I never could figure out why the patrician SOB was so popular. Although he was said to be very personable. Read “DuPont Dynasty: Behind the Nylon Curtain” by Gerard Colby.
In reflection, I go his nickname a little wrong. As coined by News Journal columnist Ralph Moyed (after DuPont mentioned “Joe Sixpack” as a typical Democratic voter - probably a laid-off autoworker), Pete was known as Pierre le Six-Pacque.
Very few of us are taking any kind of government handouts! At 72, I am entitled to my Social Security, which I paid into for years! However it is only $900 a month, because as a woman, I was paid crap wages. I supplement like everyone else, with work on-line through an etsy page and 'how to' you tube videos. Many of us found we could make a living online during the shut downs for covid. We are self employed because it saves on transportation, clothing, childcare, eldercare, and other work expenses. No one is lazily living off the government, there are no handouts available to anyone! We are industrious and will use our talents to support ourselves in poverty! We will not submit to less than a living wage to make others wealthy. If we must live on survival wages, it will be through self employment and cash under the table paid by rich creeps who won't legally employ domestic help! We will survive in spite of corporate greed!
"If we want more people to take jobs and we wish to live in a decent society, the answer is to pay people more." - well said. In addition, the executives should be forced by law to pay themselves less, a lot less - this would go a long way in reducing the absurd level of pay discrepancy.
The executives shipped millions of jobs to low-wage countries leaving those who lost their jobs in the U.S. in utter hopelessness. The money saved was pocketed by those same executives whose pay exploded as a result and the jobless millions were left to cope on their own as the government on every level failed to implement policies to help them so they were easy prey for Trump.
Our society is being devoured by money. Not the wages necessary for a decent job, but the wealthy hoarding the wealth for themselves and their family and friends. This doesn't end well in a capitalist economy dependent on ordinary people buying the products made by the rich.
EXACTLY!!!
The truth is that they want slaves! or as close to slavery as they can get it (lowest cost). Whether that be exploiting immigrants (who can't put a gun to an employer's head to 'take' a job) for cheaper labor in the US, outsourcing jobs for cheaper labor abroad, or automation (robots taking your job), the goal is to get as close as possible to paying no wage. The disguised attaches that Mr. Reich mentions (1. claiming we have a shortage of workers, (2. blaming the safety net, are both efforts to fool us into agreeing with them. So we will let them exploit more immigrants with low pay, outsource more jobs abroad, automate more jobs (robots flipping burgers, building cars, moving packages in a warehouse, and medical functions...) and to avoid having to do the right thing- treat employees fairly, and pay them fairly. They claim this is capitalism but it is not, because they have been able to control too many of the factors that are supposed to be checks and balances. They have control over the 'influence of EMPLOYEES and over the 'influence of GOVERNMENT'. Employees- they have effectively poisoned employee use of Unions, they have halted increases in minimum wage (via the government), they control our retirements (and gamble with our 401-Ks and Roth IRAs in the stock market to make them more wealthy; they also want total control and the additional wealth they could get from ending Social Security), they control our healthcare (prior to ObamaCare) that most still get healthcare from their employers, and they have us supporting cuts in taxes that give us crumbs while they get millions in relief while simultaneously taking revenue from safety-net and other programs that benefit the majority and taking funds from government agencies that would regulate their behavior. In addition, they have used their money to halt progress in congress, while using 'bought and paid for' conservative judges to set policy via the supreme court. And we continue to fall for this BS, just like those that continue to support business friendly policy so businesses can "trickle down" some crumbs.
The only problem is that they rely on people like their employees to BUY their product. How can you buy it if you don't have the money?
That used to be the case, but now they can sale to anyone anywhere!
fyi, you are so right about all of this. How do we combat the insanity? Americans are so brainwashed against unions which really could make life better for them. I know people who complain that the unions are worse than the employers and they spread the crap everywhere so any employees who are considering unions are convinced that unions are horrible, stealing their money (for dues), and giving workers nothing in return. I suspect there are a few unions that have gotten like that, but most are not and really do stand with and for workers. The corporations and businesses in general don't want that. They do want slaves and would be delighted to have people work for nearly nothing. Production has gone up significantly in the past 40 years or so, quite a lot, but salaries have not even begun to match that production increase. It is the workers who have made progress for this nation, but have not been given any credit for it, only bad working conditions if the employers can get away with it, and ignoring the needs of workers. Powell wants to put our country's economy into a recession so workers will be forced back to work for as low a wage as the corporations can get away with. Republicans are delighted because those in Congress and in state legislatures are rich and that will not harm them, not permanently, anyway. Workers need to unite and stand with and for workers if we are to keep our nation from recession. And, Powell either has to go or be negated by the Fed board. I wish some of them were caring people, but I am thinking not.
Well said fyiurban! It all goes back to when Citizens United was forced & when Pres Reagan was in office deregulating everything in the business world they could get away with. Stingy Rethugs & their so-called good for the country policies have done more harm to everyone without a million dollar bank Acct than they could possibly have imagined! So why do Evangelicals & rural folks think that the Repub Party is doing work to benefit them? How can they be educated or have their eyes opened to the harm the monopoly & capitalist favoring Party is doing to the country & ultimately NOT doing anything to benefit the people who support them?? I believe most rural poor & working class people in my state of KY vote Repub for every office without giving it a second thought bec their parents always voted Repub & they know that our state Legislature has been 90% Repub for decades! They must feel they have to be part of the majority.
From its founding, a major share of the wealth built by this country's economy was fueled by slave labor, whether indentured European servants or stolen Africans, and the labor of exploited immigrants and women. Furthermore, there exists the seemingly universal "business class" belief that any duties not performed by the owners of capital is mindless, devoid of value and should be compensated as cheaply as possible. That mindset convinces a majority of business owners that they are the only market participants who should reap increasing benefits from a growing economy.
If prices for their products and services should rise and lift profits, it's the righteous working of capitalism and testament to their business acumen. If at any time these same forces cause wages to rise for the working people, whose efforts turn the gears of the economy, cries of "labor shortages" and "inflationary wage cycles" hit the news. Just like in the 2008 financial crisis, the well-heeled declare "capitalism for the poor and socialism for the wealthy." They then leverage their years of lobbying dollars, moving public policy to cushion their falls with the bodies, and social safety nets, of poor to middle class people during impending downturns.
To echo Professor Reich, if workers aren't applying, that's simple economics: you haven't raised your salary offer high enough to hit the strike price. If you want to draw applicants, either from their homes, another employer or industry, to work for you, your offer must improve. If capitalism's precepts are good enough for working people, why aren't they good enough for the industrial titans?
C. Jacobs, I really liked your final statement. I think it sums up a major part of our capitalist dilemma. "If capitalism's precepts are good enough for working people, why aren't they good enough for the industrial titans?" It seems that corporations et al just make things up as they go along to give themselves whatever type of advantage they want (think they deserve). When they don't get all they want, they cry to the government that they deserve more and should be given it through tax breaks or direct bail-outs. The government comes through for them if they are wealthy and white enough. That is not exactly the "free market" they claim to embrace. It sounds a lot like welfare to me, welfare for folks who don't actually need it and whine about giving it to those who actually do.
As usual, we agree here. I often say to some of my friends that many business leaders are playing Calvinball.
ABSOLUTELY!!!
You are correct. we fall for it because politics and the public discourse is not based on rational thinking. It is based on emotional connections: belonging to my 'tribe'; validating my emotional grievances; feeling disempowered; fear of the 'other', be it women, race, gender bias, geography, political persuasion; keeping the pattern taught early by parents; listening to my 'priest'; ignorance allowing slogans to substitute for thought; and more. All this with a background of sustained propaganda regarding capitalism and socialism as misunderstood economic theories. So if you want to see change, the political messaging has to address these factors and there need to be empowerment processes throughout the society. good luck with that.
Wow! Lola, you have really addressed the major problems with reaching people with the truth about our economy, jobs, and working conditions and wages. I know a lot of people like me wonder why people keep voting against their best interest, but if they are told women, Black, people, immigrants, or some other group is coming for their jobs, that old tripe still works. The clans never do look to see who is really causing their problems, not even identifying themselves, so they don't see that they are pawns and unless they snap out of their tribal cage, things won't get better for them, and it isn't other groups coming after their jobs, it is the rich corporations making their work harder and paying less in real money than people were paid 40 years ago for the same job.
If they seek to divide us, we know one of the solutions is Unity=power-in-numbers (via democracy, via unions, via collective action, via pooling our resources, via capitalizing on our diversity of skills and experiences so there is someone that is strong, where I am weak). They seek to lie, Omit and misinform, so another solution is to keep our lines of dialogue open, in an effort to expose the lies and misinformation... a lie, unchallenged, becomes the truth to someone (this goes for all the "tough" conversations about the things/issues they use to divide us- race, gender, sexual orientation, class, religion, education/history, politics, etc.) This can be challenging, but if you can help one person and then that person helps another, etc, etc., progress can be made. NOW is the time to boycott and or create a competing business that does the right thing... If we lose the safety net or democracy, boycotts/protests will require major sacrifices- one's livelihood or even ones life (if you don't work, you don't eat!).
Right you are! That last statement is well and profoundly put.
I agree. Executive salaries and bonuses should be stopped immediately! Absurd level of pay discrepancies indeed!!! I’ve never seen an executive in the biopharma industry earn his (usually male) keep.
Maria, yes, then those corporations used and abused the foreign workers to make stuff we Americans wanted, many dying and injured just so those corporations wouldn't have to install decent working conditions and preyed on poor people desperate for jobs paying almost nothing, that could help them feed their families. That was going on here with the jobs that were left, but we did have a few laws to keep it in check. Executives get to their high level because they truly believe they are better than everyone else and want to be paid more than anyone else. It is, as you say, unacceptable! There should be a cap on CEO salaries/packages. Above a certain level, they should pay very high percentages in taxes. It won't make them poor and not much less rich, but it would be more fair. I think that is true of everyone earning above say, 25 million dollars, no matter who they work for. This needs to be fixed. Unfortunately, with Republicans ruling the House (with a 6 vote margin) and Mitch McConnell crying filibuster at every turn with no requirements to actually take the floor and stand for something, nothing is going to happen. We need to find ways to get more Democrats out to vote despite the crazy voter suppression laws passed in red states and the anti-voting crap approved by our Supreme Court conservative "justices."
Yes! Pay the rich less and prices could go down.
Interesting. Recently I took the time to read the annual report of a company in which I have a few shares. This is the company most of my family has worked at and my summer jobs there paid for college. I note that in the coming year the CEO will make up to $12 M. I say up to, since much of that is bonuses and stock options that are valuable only if the planets align just so. In actual promised cash it’s around $900k, a lot of money but as the median worker there makes about $65k the ratio is around 13x the median. I’ll be watching the next annual to see how he did; the paper products business isn’t what it once was and I will regard success as keeping our multiple plants open.
Charles Dickens must be turning in his grave to see the richest country in the world exploit its working class in the same way the UK did in the 19th century. Sadly, the USA is regressing and this is another example of the imminent decline of the American empire .... The greed of US corporations knows no bounds !!
Actually Dickens would probably be gratified and flattered by the comparison.
Eh, I wouldn't go THAT far, Erin. Are things very, very bad now? Sure. But with the cruel, heartless boomers dying out and the younger generations voting nearly 100% PROGRESSive, I feel we are in for some fun changes soon.
Your post is horrifyingly ageist. Do you really expect that all boomers feel and act the same way? It’s just like racism. Shame on you. Have you been arrested for civil disobedience yet? I have. I also got a bill turned into law, by initiative petition. What have you done?
Being a Baby Boomer myself, we then lived in an era of fighting for the highest good of humankind, and the environment.
Many of us put our lives on the line to try to change the Moral Compass of the country, and the world.
Apathy was not a word in our vocabulary, but we should not discount the ideas and works of the millennials.
Both generations may have different methodologies in the goals of bringing back the moral compass of our nation back to center.
We all know that an unexamined life is not worth living, and many of the millennials are also working for change as much as we “Relics of the 60’s”also did, but now we have many different types of causes, passions, and much of our media, and the advent of social media has placed a new type of obstacle,which has allowed us to be much less in touch with who/what are the truths during these turbulent times.
That in itself throws a huge glitch in how we move forward by working together as a collective and cohesive force.
I believe that “intention” is what rules over any of our actions.
As naive as I may sound, trust me, am anything but that
I am one of those cruel heartless boomers, and as far as I’m concerned you can drop dead too, you arrogant MF. 100% progressive.? 🐄 💩 What % even got motivated enough to show up?
Tsk,,Tsk, Tsk....
If you want to be thought of as “credible “, and your comments taken seriously, then you’ve certainly killed that, with your abusive words.
Actually, it is the quieter voices that are heard much more than the loud voices.
Your loud voice is being tuned out by many.
Feel free to reply, but I ignore verbally abusive responses-they mean nothing to me-not a blip on my -and others’ radar.
Just sayin😏
Generation 💤
You sound like you're bitter as a result of some bad luck. Blaming scores of others won't fix what's ailing you. Try opening your mind a little farther, and maybe therapy.
Oh Daniel, I hope you are right! The sad thing for me is how little informed so many of the young people I know are. And now, some school districts are "forbidding" teachers to even mention political topics. I know I ignored that all the time, but I also know most teachers won't take the chance to buck the system. Courage is not in abundance mostly because Republicans rule a bunch of school districts just like they do our House of Representatives and Supreme Court. Republican ignorance of life beyond what they are personally experiencing is destructive, but what we have, just watch the House Circus!
Makes me wonder how the meek will inherit the earth.
Thank you, Dr. Reich. I agree with your whole analysis of our current situation and of what needs to be done to improve our situation.
The views of the Republicans consider only portions of the whole story, the portions that fit the defective 'solutions' they propose. And their proposals are all designed to ultimately serve the greed of those who already have more than they realistically need, all of which they have gained at great cost to all the rest of us.
I listened to some of the Faux News Hannity and McCarthy show last night. It was beyond belief and one of the most disgusting displays I've seen in a long time. Repubs are so despicable that I honestly hate them. I never thought I'd catch myself thinking and feeling that way, but that's where it's gone. I couldn't even watch it all. We are in for a horrendous 2 years. What is wrong with this country.
Listening to lies is the problem. As a Bible student, it is interesting to note that this is the Original Problem: Eve listened to (and believed) a lie, and Adam, although “not deceived,” weakly went along with it for his own selfish reason. Talk about coming full circle! We are ending where we began. (Gen 3:1-5, 1 Tim 2:14)
This is not good at all, because, if you notice, where we eventually ended up - after Adam and Eve were kicked out of the Garden of Eden - was with Noah and the Flood, i.e., the destruction of the vast majority of the human population and life on Earth as it was previously known. A terrifying scenario, but really, that’s sure where it looks like we’re headed, again. Maybe those Bible stories aren’t so quaint after all.
As you will note, some like to obfuscate with mysticism and pseudoscience. But we aren’t going to repeat the previous path, of Flood etc. The reason God didn’t crush the rebellion by force, that would have ended humankind, and count as a failure of his work. So He decided to give us the freedom (from Him) that we chose, to prove that it would lead to disaster. There is no need to do it twice. The point has been proven to any honest observer. Now at the brink, the next step is to rescue those who have admitted God was right and clear the earth of those who stubbornly keep trying to prove the lie. This is our home, and God will see it made right. He will not be defeated.
(The Flood story illustrates that God can and will interfere when things get too perilous, but for the most part he is hands-off other than to protect his interests. The next intervention will use a different method, and no, the planet will not be burned up. He will not allow his creation to be destroyed. That too would be a defeat.)
Perhaps He could intervene with something that can be used with much more precision like a Covid -style virus. Was the 2019 a test run?
People automatically blame God for everything because that is what most religion teaches. But it is enough that we are exposed to whatever the natural world in its indifference can throw at us. That is the whole point. God knows we won't make it (long term) without his help, but we bought the lie that we'd be fine on our own. Covid was NOT from God. In fact he very rarely brings anything. Storms, earthquakes, whatever-- almost all natural. He is not "managing" the world, nor anyone's life. He only acts to keep his overarching purpose (to prove the Deceiver wrong, and in the end rescue humble people who have tried to be good*) from being derailed. Which includes a degree of protection (not absolute) for those who respect him. Which is a lot fewer than you would think based on pious claims, since a lot of religion is a cover for hypocrisy.
*most of whom are presently dead (we are not immortal, as most religions teach) but that is not a problem for God. He can restore them to life when it is time for that.
I’m not worried at all about what god is or isn’t….. I think that many of the Biblical stories are metaphors for human experience. And our human hubris, or human proclivity to be greedy, to be obstinate, to deceive, to lie, to be power hungry, etc., etc., leads to great imbalances in society and in nature. We can verify this by simply looking at our world, and the destruction we’ve created. Not some g/God. Us. We do harm to ourselves; we can do good to ourselves and to the planet, as well. I don’t care what god/God is or isn’t. I do think that these stories, written by PEOPLE, as in, human beings, can be very instructive as to how we can make our own lives, individually and collectively, easier, or harder, on ourselves. It’s too bad that religious literature has gotten such a bad wrap.
Man, born of woman, comes into the world in pain and from the moment of conception begins to die.... on the other hand science says we live in multiple dimensions but are not able to experience more than one. Math and physics professors are hard at work on "new math" to give us tools that may offer a portal to a time tunnel..... So "original sin" may be obsolete and no longer deemed original.
Or, it's all allegorical, and can't be taken literally.
It’s unlucky to be superstitious.
Charlie, I understand the feeling. Even just hearing small snippets of the stuff those folks say when it is played on the mainstream media or MSNBC is nauseating. I find them to be users, beyond insincere, OK, liars and gaslighters. They honestly know what they are doing and love seeing what kind of havoc they can cause by their words. Steve Bannon is a criminal who just keeps pumping out the nonsense and people who crave power all over the world are listening and taking advice. Why that fool isn't in jail, I haven't figured out. He was supposed to be sentenced for contempt of Congress but I have heard no sign of anything being done about that, so he lies on and has a huge audience. We all should be asking ourselves how there are so many haters out there in our nation who cling to the crap those Republicans and their media spew every day and if there is any way to reach/stop them. It is disgusting!
it's predictable that corporations and GQP are hand-in-hand in this dystopian move to punish the citizenry for simply being alive and to impose austerity upon everyone who isn't uber-wealthy. it's all about controlling the masses. modern slavery.
the problem that the corporations and ultra-wealthy haven't yet solved is how to enjoy all the benefits that a modern society offers -- top-notch healthcare, scientific advances, transport, food, housing and its maintenance, interesting books and the various gadgetry that make life so fun -- whilst denying all those things to the rest of us. according to their plan, we are supposed to happily build, repair, maintain and provide all the amenities, all the everything, that the elites have and want, we are supposed to magically obtain the education and skills and tools necessary to accomplish these tasks, but after they take what they want from us, we are supposed to disappear into our hovels and remain out of sight until they require us to appear and to take care of >them< .
i look with suspicion at robots: on one hand, i think they are fun and interesting, but on the other hand, they are the new slave class of the 2030s and 2040s, whilst we, the deposed slave class, will all be collateral damage sacrificed upon the altar of absolute control and obscene profits.
who will these people destroy after we are all gone? each other.
"They took our jobs" could apply to robots and immigrants equally - but, in theory, we're not really short of either (the root of the problem is - as suggested - something to do with control; innovation w.r.t. means of employment, e.g. temping, contracting, "apps", etc. all but entirely obviates risk for the employer - so how can the balance of capital & profit motive be on the corporation side of the equation, i.e. without employment and pay increasing?)
PS: Perhaps the shadow of actual slavery casts too long a shadow on the political system to see dysfunction precluded? (Congressional districts in the Rio Grande valley voting for Freedom Caucus representatives seems... odd.)
"They are taking our jobs" has been applied to women, black ppl (former slaves), and immigrants or all kinds. The truth is that they want slaves! or as close to slavery as they can get it (lowest cost). Whether that be exploiting immigrants (who can't put a gun to an employer's head to 'take' a job) for cheaper labor in the US, outsourcing jobs for cheaper labor abroad, or automation (robots taking your job), the goal is to get as close as possible to paying no wage. The disguised attaches that Mr. Reich mentions (1. claiming we have a shortage of workers, (2. blaming the safety net, are both efforts to fool us into agreeing with them. So we will let them exploit more immigrants with low pay, outsource more jobs abroad, automate more jobs (robots flipping burgers, building cars, moving packages in a warehouse, and medical functions...) and to avoid having to do the right- treat employees fairly, and pay them fairly. They claim this is capitalism but it is not, because they have been able to control too many of the factors that are supposed to be checks and balances. They have control over the influence of EMPLOYEES and over the influence of GOVERNMENT. Employees- they have effectively poisoned employee use of Unions, they have halted increases in minimum wage (via the government), they control our retirements (and gamble with our 401-Ks and Roth RAs in the stock market to make them more wealthy), they control our healthcare (prior to ObamaCare) that most still get healthcare from and they have us supporting cuts in taxes that give us crumbs while they get millions in relief while simultaneously taking revenue from safety-net and other programs that benefit the majority and taking funds from government agencies that would regulate their behavior. In addition, they have used their money to halt progress in congress, while using 'bought and paid for' conservative judges to set policy via the supreme court. And we continue to fall for this BS, just like those that continue to support business friendly policy so businesses can "trickle down" some crumbs.
"As old as the hills", these failings of labor markets are...
immigrants are not and never will be robots.
looking through comments affixed to this piece, i see you've got quite A Thing for immigrants and immigration in general. what's the dealio? did you wake up on the wrong side of the ocean to america?
Why would alienation require an ocean? (Isn't that why Green Day called it 'Idiot America'...?)
I may not have the wording exact, but Chief Sitting Bull was quoted as saying "The white man can make anything, but he doesn't know how to distribute it."
We know that in a capitalist system that consumers only get what they can afford to buy. Otherwise, goods given to consumers who can't afford them is called "charity".
Perhaps Chief Sitting Bull had a kinder, more generous system, making sure everyone had their basic needs met.
Humanity certainly could use a kinder system.
Their children too will face their deeds at some point.
Another thing to add to the woes of the working class, housing costs. If you aren't bringing in a paycheck to cover your basic needs [and in today's society working in any job requires 1. reliable transportation 2: a permanent address 3: a working phone 4: enough nutrition to get through the day 5. great health.] And that is just to get hired. Once hired you'd better hope you don't get colds,. covid, flu, or any other disease. Most good employment does not allow the accumulation of sick or vacation days in the first six months. And that is good companies. The average job now you're lucky if you ever get sick leave or vacation. Some businesses, in addition to lousy pay even make their workers stay on the job New Year's Day, July 4, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. They don't even recognize the other holidays.
Statistics show that 15% of the population does not have the intellectual capacity to take care of themselves. The best they can do is "sheltered" work. In some parts of the country, environmental factors aggravate and exacerbate that problem. As a society, we should give priority to helping the least able among us.
Daniel, does that statistic apply to any random grouping of individuals? I'm just thinking about 15% of the 535 members of congress.
Thanks for the good laugh, Paul! Makes you wonder, with the current crop in House and Senate (:-)
Thank you for that statistic, Daniel. I agree we must help those in present day society, who are unable to care for themselves, including the elderly in various stages of dementia. The sheltered workshops for the younger "mentally handicapped" work pretty well. The workers are protected from abuse by the public, at the same time they are able to feel pride in themselves by 'making a living'. At both ends of the age spectrum, they cannot live alone for 2 reasons, First they are unable to care for themselves, especially the elderly who may not even be able to dress and attend to their own hygiene. Second because a certain segment of society takes pleasure in abusing those who cannot defend themselves. At this time, unfortunately, their well being depends a lot on the State in which they live, and even in the better States, MONEY. The cost of their care is high and, especially when the Federal government is involved, their idea of the cost of living is some where in the 1950's. Example: in 1974 the cost of living for one elder citizen was set at $600/month. In 2019, guess what? the cost of living for a single elderly citizen was set at $600 per month. And like you,
Daniel and J. Nol, I have worked with these disadvantaged persons from 1973 to 2021. I now live in a 'Senior Independent Living' apartment complex where we have dozens of persons with what are euphemistically called 'memory problems' political speak for demented.
Daniel, I had also heard one young woman who was homeless. She was working, but young and on her own. After over a year being homeless, she finally saved enough to pay all the up front costs for a place to live. She said, “If you don’t have a mental health problem when you first become homeless, you will by the time you’ve been homeless for 2 years.“
The sheltered workplace used to be the military. But with the “professionalization” of the military over the past 40 or so years, Forrest Gump is no longer welcome in the ranks of the army. The USA needs a new sheltered workplace such as the old Civilian Conservation Corps.
Hi Stan, in California (at least until 2003 that I can attest to) we have had very efficient and effective, "sheltered workshop" NGO's". The one with which I was most familiar was in Sacramento County and they provided food service to schools and some businesses. Using the 'mentally challenged' to cook, serve, take payment and give change as needed. They had two responsible unchallenged adults to oversee that all was done correctly and the young adults providing the services were respected and never physically nor emotionally abused. In addition to food services, they provided teams of those in their care to businesses, for repetative tasks, and even for agricultural labor. Obviously, these were NOT for profit organizations and although I hope they are still functioning, I no longer have contact. If they have had to compete with an able minded work force due to Corporate greed they are probably on the losing end of the stick
An additional sheltered workshop that I see is the US Congress.
Thanks for the laugh, they certainly are sheltered - of the workshop, not so much.
Or Congress.
Stan beat me to it!
When I read “sheltered work,” I thought, at first, you were referring to people who can only work in offices. LOL! How many Americans would be “self-sufficient” if they had to build their own shelter, grow their own food, and can enough for the winter? Not many. The kinds of work in the US today that people are paid for and paid well for, hence allowing them to be “self-sufficient” are highly dependent on interdependence.
It’s unfortunate that a person’s worth and whether or not they make meaningful contributions to society are so often conflated with how much money they have or make. It is only with such beliefs that Republicans can aim to do away with Medicare, Social Security, and all of the rest of America’s very meager social safety nets.
If a person’s worth is primarily or only tied to how much they “earn” or have, people, in particular Republicans, can make all kinds of justifications for disposing of people who aren’t “earning their keep.” Everybody either does or can contribute some meaningful and important good to society, even if it is something intangible that cannot be easily commoditized or it is a contribution that is simply taken for granted and not paid. The real question, to me is, when are highly paid, highly destructive people going to finally come around and contribute some meaningful good to society?
Caroline, you’ve put your finger on a big problem: people who are destructive shouldn’t be highly paid. I’m still struggling with the idea that some people should be paid more than others. The happiest people I know are those whose work is “in line with the grain” of their personality. There are people who do what they do because it comes naturally; they would persist in their line of work no matter what the wages. Has anyone done a serious study of this topic? I guess I’m a socialist at heart.
Rather paternalistic viewpoint and a shining example of "coastal elitism" and smug arrogance. I understand what you are saying but it's exactly the type of tweet that Faux News would run with
What? There are those among us who can't support themselves, so don't we have an obligation as a society to provide them what they need? How is that "coastal elitism"? Have you ever visited a sheltered workshop, or worked with developmentally delayed adults who really can't take care of themselves? I have.
Thanks.
FU. Heard disability cases, worked on policy.
I worked for DOL and before that SSA and wrote many papers on the subject had hundreds of expert witnesses testify in my hearings, was a member of ACUS, and before even that I gave discharges when I was in the military after my Vietnam service when we had "Project 100,000." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_100,000
When I was at DOL, vocational witnesses tried to place injured workers, and much of what I say is contained in Appendix A, to the Department of Labor, Dictionary of Occupational Titles (1991) still used by the experts.
Once upon a time I represented school districts and was involved in litigation and the establishment of special programs under the predecessor to IDEA, the Handicap Act of 1973. In worked on the child regulations for disability for SSA. I stay current through professional organizations. I used to be a member of ACUS, was past chair of a division of the American Bar Association, past president of some other organizations.
I held hearings in places like Appalachia, Mississippi Delta, Central Valley of California, where I met these folks "up close and personal".
I was also asked to be a "parliamentarian" by subagencies of DOL like OSHA. I did not make policy but have a handle on it.
IMHO the best "charity" in the US is SSA. I'm an advocate for SSI.
That is an impressive CV and one you should be proud of. I'm perplexed by the FU introduction; it does not further your premise. I still stand by my statement that Faux News would gleefully run your comment on their chyron and the comment is paternalistic. The average Rethuglican at that metaphorical "everymans" diner would not disagree.
I've been writing about this for more than 30 years. I'm available.
Actually most Republicans want to cut all benefits. I documented this about 12 years ago when they tried to bankrupt the SSA disability trust funds. https://digitalcommons.pepperdine.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1601&context=naalj
Ironically, in my experience many in that 15% who vote are Republicans and vote against themselves.
I had a plan to help save the retirement fund, also. https://www.americanbar.org/groups/senior_lawyers/publications/voice_of_experience/2011/winter/social-security-maybe-charity-should-begin-at-home/
Thank you for pointing out how many of the "needier" people vote against their own best interest. They have not seen the changes in the Republican Party's interest away from the Country as a whole, to the wealthy first and foremost.
That is exacerbated if you have children! more cost for housing, food and health! What if they get sick and you have to take off to get them to the doctor, or because they can't go to school or to daycare (if you can afford it!)?
The solution is simple. We just return to feudalism, sponsored by the church. We'll be grateful for whatever trickles down, and our children can learn trades as indentured servants. Might be a little tough on people of color, of course, because they'll face discrimination, but they have bootstraps, right? It's Republican Disneyland! And Barrett, Alito, Kavanaugh, Thomas, and Gorsuch get to make all the rules!
This is how some religions proselytize. E.G. One reason to consider Mormonism.
Normally I like your comments Daniel. This one is founded in ignorance and rumor. Please research the actual faith before baselessly disparaging it in a comment meant to be funny.
I will testify that I have heard the pitch that if one joins one is entitled to the equivalent of general assistance. Funding for the welfare program is provided by donations from Church members. One Sunday a month, members of the Church go without two consecutive meals and give generously the money they would have spent on food to the Church. Welfare Square: Located near Church headquarters in Salt Lake City, Utah. https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/topic/welfare-and-self-reliance#:~:text=Funding%20for%20the%20welfare%20program,on%20food%20to%20the%20Church.&text=Welfare%20Square%3A%20Located%20near%20Church,in%20Salt%20Lake%20City%2C%20Utah.
I also have seen the statistics, especially in Utah that Mormons use church rather than government services.
Perhaps I misunderstood your comment? I thought you were saying that the Mormons put their children to work.
By George, I think you've got it! As to the bootstrap theory - the reality is that it's impossible to life oneself up by one's own bootstraps. That defies gravity.
By participating in the black market, you have a better chance of bootstrapping your success.
https://enroncorp.com/corp/pressroom/awards/executive.html
Horatio Alger award winners *defy* gravity (no kidding - missing from the Wikipedia page & everything)...
A company owned by an American oligarch could probably be thought a feudal realm: between the consideration afforded to the "founders" (really their equity) & the outsized interest of the early employees and investors there'd be *more than enough* reason to simply conflate 'company' & 'country' ("What's good for General Motors ..." - and no differently Chevron, Microsoft, etc. etc. etc.)...
PS: Why would you bend an ear to the church? This is America!
In order to get fed at the Salvation Army you have to listen to the sermon. Catholic Charities runs many state social services programs.
“You will eat by and by
In that glorious land in the sky (way up high).
Work and pray, live on hay,
You’ll get pie in the sky when you die (that’s a lie!)”
- Joe Hill, “The Preacher and the Slave”
I vaguely remember George W. Bush advocating for, and I think getting, funding for "faith based" charities. It always seemed a bad idea to me for a lot of reasons. The "separation of Church and State" is a really good practice for a lot of reasons. There is nothing stopping any religion from starting their own "charity" and funding it themselves, a few actually do that. Churches always seem to want more government funding for their religious things, but then turn around and claim "freedom of religion" to run their charities however they please. Everybody should be so fortunate. Maybe there wouldn't be such great need for "charities" if regular people had the lawyers and connections to work the system as well as Churches do.
Not to mention the tax-free status...
Clearly no sarcasm in saying that - once the 2000 election was stolen - America became its own kind of Salvation Army (saving Afghanistan, then Iraq, then ...)
... but having actually heard that one of the Bush family's favorite charities is the very same it probably can't prove to be sarcasm (and especially in the case of the whole enterprise ultimately having been dedicated to *their* salvation, of all things).
> = (
PS: The question was more meant to pertain to the lord of the aforementioned feudal realm (i.e. via his corporate vassal)... but "eh".
This situation is also cruel to those still in the workforce who are under great pressure to carry heavier burdens in wildly understaffed and often toxic work environments. Labor shortage is felt every day by those still stuck in the corporate grinder. Corporations don’t “feel” the pains of the “shortage” they gripe about, they benefit from it and nurture it.
Hits hardest at "entry level" jobs where employees are fungible. Those jobs can be learned in one day and most require "heavy" work. A huge proportion are in "casual" labor. .
For example. Nursing schools from graduate to vocational crank out thousands of new nurses yet every level of healthcare remains "understaffed." Patients lay unattended for hours with beeping monitors and unanswered call lights. Because the nurses are all temps and either don't know what to do or have no motivation to. Why. Because temps get sometimes double the hourly pay of an employed nurse, and they can choose their hours. So the Masters of Healthcare pay more and get less and pass it on to you. G-d bless the brave nurses in NYC who are striking to give the good care for good wages they went to school for.
Add to those facts that health care systems in the US are private companies that require a healthy profit level to maintain their investor's interest, hence the perversion of motive from top down has NOTHING to do with how patients feel at all or even the nurses who care for them for that matter ! Just squash anything that reeks of higher costs is the primary motivation of any corporation !
Our for-profit health "care" system has resulted in over 500,000 personal bankruptcies a year due to medical bills, one-third of GoFundMe and other crowdfunding campaigns being appeals to help someone pay off medical expenses, and so-called feel-good stories about employees giving up their paid sick leave days to a coworker who needs cancer treatment and a high school robotics club assembling a special wheelchair for a special-needs child because his family's insurance company is too greedy and selfish to pay even one nickel for a $20,000 wheelchair.
Welcome to Mordor.
Exactly the way the private prison industrial complex operates. It needs a steady diet of human lives to remain profitable. 😡
“Structural labor shortage.”
I don't think DOL BLS and the Fed have the whole story. IMHO many employers pay workers "under the table" and effects from price fixing and price gouging undermine the cost of doing business for legitimate employers.
Economists estimate that 18 percent to 19 percent of income nationwide is not reported to the Internal Revenue Service.. IMHO side hustling and the gig economy are becoming the new American dream, with nearly 70 million Americans earning cash under the table.
Evading taxes is a crime.
Fed policy is sending us into a recession. It's worse for retired people living on a fixed income than it is for the general public.
Would replacing Jerome Powell be helpful? I would nominate Robert Reich to be acting Fed chair if one were needed.
Maybe we could replace JP with a robot!
Ph.D. robot...?
I once asked Dr. Reich if the Fed ever bent an ear his way. His answer, yes, but they don't listen.
... perhaps immigration policy has something to do with it?
Many employers == the Charles Kochs and other free market libertarians -- support open immigration.
Mmm... 'They Don't Represent Us' in reverse? (The Christian/Republican representatives that they purcha - uh - "fund"... are "tough on crime", want to "protect our borders", believe in "national security", etc. etc. - and fail to support even a strong dollar policy, to say nothing of open immigration!)
Clearly the math doesn't add up - but maybe that's true for the employers who traded prosperity for Trump Tax Cuts? (The only folks who can't report their income are the folks who can't get paid what they're worth because of failed immigration policies!)
100% correct. My small business (15 employees) competes with fast food for employees. The only way we get people in the door is a bit more money and paid benefits. It's amazing how many small businesses won't offer PAID benefits.
"We all do better when we all do better." Paul Wellstone
Pal Wellstone is a great person to quote!
All of what was said here is obvious. Mr. Reich has, as usual, described the situation in terms that are accessible and cogent. But something keeps eating at me. In order to have a decent society, don't we have to be a decent society to begin with? Sometimes we get close, but currently we are not. Our checkered past provides us with clues as to why this might be the case. We, like many of the civilizations that preceded us, have an uneasy relationship with things like kindness, commonsense, egalitarianism. In short, we are severely limited by a persistent culture of selfishness, greed, violence, and intolerance. This culture "worked" for a time (if you could actually call it that). But that time is way past. Ultimately the solution to this mess is not going to come from current politics, religion, economics, science or technology. It will have to be a sea change in the way we see the world and our place in it. The previously mentioned things will then follow in good order. What we need, in short, is a modern axial age. All of the things that Mr. Reich has mentioned are obvious, good and sound, But without a social context decent enough to recognize and implement these very good recommendations the effect will be like planting wheat on a concrete sidewalk.
Millions of the USA’s Christians love the sermon on the mount but don’t understand it. Jesus was a socialist.
Sorry for the quibble, but Jesus predated the socialists and though he might have influenced modern socialism his message had a different perspective and motivation. His message was highly influenced by a Jewish pre-rabbinic apocalyptic movement. That movement believed that, within the life spans of its followers, God would come with an army of angels and end not only the the Roman occupation, but time itself.
Most of what you think was socialism was simply the idea that it was pointless to cling to worldly possessions when the world was going to be swept away for the coming of the Mashiach (Messiah) and the (arguably socialist from a modern perspective) kingdom of God.
Socialism got it's start in the 19th century. And though some of it's founding ideas are to be found in ancient and medieval sources it is a 19th - 21st century movement. There was, is, a Christian Socialist movement however. It got it's start in the early 19th century as well. It's based on both biblical sources as well as the thought that developed in modernity.
Thanks for the update! I was also thinking about the reference in the Book of Acts that describes the earliest Christians as sharing all their worldly possessions with one another — as you point out, waiting for the Kingdom of Heaven to arrive. There’s also the parable of the vineyard, in which workers who start late in the day are paid the same as those who started working in the morning, a situation that Jesus seemed satisfied with.
A nation gets the government it deserves.
In our case, since a radical Republican minority holds enough power here to effectively sabotage our governance , we get the government THEY deserve.
Yes! Why are so many “leaders” the people that show the worst human traits? Putin, MBS, Kim Jung-Un…
Taking and holding power requires a fairly abnormal perspective. Tyrants are not normal people. That said, theoretically a Democracy would be a foil to such personalities. History suggests otherwise.
It's not a labor shortage but a productivity deficit caused by the American labor model.
If the "the corporate Republican argument" were correct then the mill worker economies of Northern England in the 1800s into the arly 1900s should be the role models of how to run an economy. Work people to death, keep them in poverty, and then replace them with new talent generated by a lack of birth control.
Looking at today's realities in Northern England might leave a different impression. The region has gone from struggle to struggle to get past the legacy of the mill works economy when the textile world moved on to Asia. Rather than a growing population and prosperity it is de-populating as jobs and industries have moved to Asia.
We can do better! Why not a 4-day work week? Why not give people sufficient time off to rest, build relationships, and enage in life long learning?
Perhaps a difference in approach to productivity may explain why France (yes, France) has much higher worker porductivity than the U.S. See https://www.huffpost.com/entry/why-the-french-are-more-productive_b_7179390
Can we do better? The modern loom - the one which weaves colorful dreams in the palm of your hand - also requires labor: note the spiraling salaries (and ever-shorter working lives) which accompany working conditions that exhaust creative talent & create an entire class of people who are impoverished not only spiritually but democratically. We ape their success: all the great technologists are entrepreneurs; "founders".
Get rich quick? Die trying; nothing could be more American.
PS: Our system reflects a productivity deficit because our mentality is deficient, i.e. in viewing labor as a resource to exploit (why does Lina Khan have to do away with NDAs for an industry which offers so much in terms of "productivity" - sans unions, collective bargaining, & any other labor market innovations?). Should it come as a surprise that the political system is similarly exploited (e.g. by the companies at the forefront of the productivity, i.e. Uber & Lyft)?
Labor as a "resource" is a kind way to describe a mentality.
I can vividly recall being in an investor call with top management (I worked in IR at one time) when the COO commented that employees are just another "commodity" that could be bought and sold. The business leader came from one of the very top tier investment banks. His views were common of his peers. In his mind, employees were on par with the ketchup in the canteen. Just another commodity.
A lot of the reports that there is a shortage is a pretext to get temporary foreign workers.
I heard H1B visa cases. Companies would allege they could not find qualified US workers. I'm sure there are scams. People like Donald J Trump hire temporary visa workers on his properties to displace US workers.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lakireddy_Bali_Reddy
At least one, to be sure ('Marcia Poole' would corroborate that) - though the bigger scam is tying the immigration status to a given employer (no differently than health insurance pre-A.C.A.)...
Putting the "fun" in "fungible", that...
= /
"Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed. This world in arms is not spending money alone. It is spending the sweat of its laborers, the genius of its scientists, the hopes of its children. The cost of one modern heavy bomber is this: a modern brick school in more than 30 cities. It is two electric power plants, each serving a town of 60,000 population. It is two fine, fully equipped hospitals. It is some fifty miles of concrete pavement. We pay for a single fighter plane with a half million bushels of wheat. We pay for a single destroyer with new homes that could have housed more than 8,000 people." --President Dwight D. Eisenhower, April 16, 1953, speaking to the American Society of Newspaper Editors at the Statler Hotel in Washington.
Tht would be former 4-star general Eisenhower, no?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dwight_D._Eisenhower
I heard he was an antifascist.
I agree one hundred percent. What if employers were taxed higher for paying employees below a living wage? For example, let's take a look at Walmart.
Walmart benefits by paying employees low wages. Often, the wages are so low that employees must get SNAP (formerly food stamps) to survive. Well then, who pays when employers like Walmart do not pay a living wage? The government pays and tax payers pick up the tab.
I think it's fair to say that the government and society have a vested interest that workers are healthy and self-sufficient. Government and society have a vested interest that employers pay a living wage so public assistance is not needed. So why not reward employers who pay their employees a living with a lower tax rate?
Perhaps a corporation's tax rate should be tied to the percentage of their employees needing public assistance, or earning a living wage?
It seems that incentivizing a living wage with a lower tax rate could make a win-win-win. Workers would benefit by making more and not needing public assistance. Businesses would pay a lower tax rate, creating lower worker turnover and more trained employees. The government and society would benefit by having fewer people and families needing public assistance. I don't know, but incentivizing a living wage with a lower tax rate seems like good solution for workers, employers and tax payers.
Before the Pandemic, I had an interesting chat with a Walmart manager on the day before Thanksgiving. On this day, the line for a cashier (and robot cashiers) was half way to the back of the store. It was very frustrating. Customers were angry. I decided to speak with a manager. In a polite manner, I pointed to the long line and asked, "why would Walmart do this to their customers? Some won't come back. It's the day before Thanksgiving. You had to know that this would be a busy day. Why are only three lanes open?
The manager explained that he didn't have enough workers. He said they even dropped the no smoking weed requirement, and they still couldn't get enough employees. Well then, why could they still need more employees, pray tell?
Having been in the fight for a living wage for several years, I asked the manager, "what is the starting pay?" He said $11.50/hr, as I recall. I replied, "Well there you go. This is Metropolitan DC. It's an expensive area. A living wage is at least $15/hr." The manager looked at me with a sad look, paused for moment, and nodded in agreement.
It was a cordial chat. I thanked him for his time. He thanked me for my patience. We wished each other a happy Thanksgiving. Indeed, paying workers more would solve the so-called worker shortage.
People always use WalMart as an example. The Disney theme parks are the same. Many of their employees qualify for assistance such as food stamps. No one talks about this, though, because they are such a popular cultural icon. Corporate greed is out of control.
Well said. I have had the same conversation with chain store managers, grocery store managers, and others- the folks upstairs won't hear it, but they know the solution as well as we do.
Wallmart had an epiphany.
Here's a question. How do people who don't work pay their bills? From my experience, unemployment benefits never came close to substituting for even the worst paying jobs. It runs out after 26 weeks here in Georgia, and that wasn't usually enough time to find a decent job. Maybe things have changed since I was in the job market, but I'm sure most people, even the lazy slobs Robert referenced have to work at least one job, or risk losing everything and finding themselves living on 2nd Ave. in a tent. However, there is something severely amiss with the world economy. I know it's true that many business owners have trouble filling jobs, but I'm sure if the job paid enough, there would be resumes arriving en masse. I ran some businesses where it was difficult to find good workers back in the 90's, but I promise that was due to my bosses cheap pay schedules. Try running a business when you know you can't pay your help enough. Anyway, there are many major problems afflicting the economy. We all know what they are. I paid $5.08 for a dozen generic eggs at Walmart here in Georgia. There's something really wrong, and it's not all the fault of the Avian flu. I'm getting really concerned now. I don't think there's anything President Biden can do because one would think he would have already done it. It's not like he doesn't want to fix it. I'm thinking in terms of price controls. We already have shortages. We just can't let the business leaders raise prices whenever they feel some slight pressure. Prices have gone up so much they will never return to pre Covid levels. That sort of thing never happens. We had better get a grip very, very soon, or the country and the world will be up the creek without a paddle.
We have more homeless than ever, so many have lost everything, and that's a situation very difficult to climb out of without help (no address, no Internet, etc.). Some probably stay with relatives or friends, maybe provide childcare and/or eldercare in return for room and board. Some scrape by, maybe because the family is down to one income are able to get some social services, however inadequate. If families get along, they probably keep squeezing more and more people into the available space.
See my comments about "under the table." Go to the parking lot at Home Depot. All the people standing around are probably waiting to "catch a break" with some employer who will provide some pay "under the table."
There have always been those who work under the table, but they aren't a significant part of the work force. Everybody has cheated on unemployment at one time or another. They caught me one time, but all they did was embarrass me and make me pay the state back some money. They didn't take my remaining benefits away but they could have. I promise trying to make it on benefits alone is a guaranteed oneway ticket to the poor house.
Stats say you're wrong...in some parts of this country the ONLY work available is "off the books."
When they closed the Chrysler assembly plant in Newark, DE, Governor Pete DuPont (yes, those DuPonts) had a mobile unemployment office set up across the street.
It was suggested that a new campaign slogan would be “vote Republican, and get an unemployment office where YOU used to work.”
Mr. DuPont, although he was a very popular governor, was a typical conservative Repub who wanted to end Social Security, lower taxes and reduce government spending. He was for drug testing high school students and if they failed, they would lose their drivers' licenses', and other popular items like that. He was not a popular presidential candidate in 1988. lol
That’s the guy. Pierre S. “Pete Sixpack”DuPont de Nemours IV. Born with a silver trust fund in his mouth. The last King of Delaware. I never could figure out why the patrician SOB was so popular. Although he was said to be very personable. Read “DuPont Dynasty: Behind the Nylon Curtain” by Gerard Colby.
I wonder how that giant trust fund tastes. I can tell you that my 2 penny trust fund didn't taste all that special. Kinda like cold metal.
In reflection, I go his nickname a little wrong. As coined by News Journal columnist Ralph Moyed (after DuPont mentioned “Joe Sixpack” as a typical Democratic voter - probably a laid-off autoworker), Pete was known as Pierre le Six-Pacque.
Very few of us are taking any kind of government handouts! At 72, I am entitled to my Social Security, which I paid into for years! However it is only $900 a month, because as a woman, I was paid crap wages. I supplement like everyone else, with work on-line through an etsy page and 'how to' you tube videos. Many of us found we could make a living online during the shut downs for covid. We are self employed because it saves on transportation, clothing, childcare, eldercare, and other work expenses. No one is lazily living off the government, there are no handouts available to anyone! We are industrious and will use our talents to support ourselves in poverty! We will not submit to less than a living wage to make others wealthy. If we must live on survival wages, it will be through self employment and cash under the table paid by rich creeps who won't legally employ domestic help! We will survive in spite of corporate greed!