Below is a statement Bloomberg made regarding teachers unions. "I don't blame the unions for asking. That's not their job to find ways to help. They weren't elected to run the school systems I had no clue a "union" should not be part of the solution or assist management working together to make a lean mean racing machine. I suppose the point here is "I don't pay you to think" and since I don't want you to think ya might as well shut down the plant because the people running this ship don't think either.
Unions are more about legalized extortion than anything else. They are causing great damage to the country.... especially public employee unions. Some union members have projected lifetime retirement benefits of $9-$10 MILLION in Illinois. How can anyone expect the taxpayer to foot THAT bill? And how could what the employee did in his/her working career justify such an amount?
I disagree Captain. Exec's are paid on the revenue they generate and size of budget they are responsible for even if they lose money. An exec's income is based on the assets under management not on the individual's contribution. Comparing exec salary to labor is irrelevant but makes good politics. A robot or machine could cost more than a human, management still has to manage the robot/machine.
Yes, that's how it works, but it's not working anymore. The disparity in pay is too great, and the easy decision to hold the bottom line is far too often a decrease in the workforce and/or workforce wage/benefit reduction. Any idiot can make those type decisions. American efficiency has always been a double edged sword. Works great so long as new opportunities are being created, but we've reached the point where new opportunities are no where near the number of people being displaced by the efficiency. Add corporate greed into the equation and you have a recipe for disaster.
It is called globalization and competition. Corporate greed is a fallacy. You don't make a reasonable profit, and you go out of business. The unions mainly exist to assist the going out of business or offshoring process. By the time they wake up, their membership will be mostly unemployed.
I know what they call it. I'm saying it's not sustainable. Those that run the corporations no longer have any skin in the game. The company goes belly up, so what. They've stolen enough money from their workers to stay comfortable regardless of general economic conditions. I don't think people realize just how dangerous of a situation we have here. The fact is, the entire country could go down, and I mean down in flames, literally, and the few people that run the show will still be very, very comfortable. That's an economic condition which can't last, and it absolutely determines the decisions these coporate leaders make. They simply don't care!
I agree, back then there were 15 baggers in the checkout line at Home Depot, then it became 12 with 1 computer, then it became 8 baggers and 4 computers, then it became 4 baggers and 10 computers, now its 1 bagger and 12 computer in the check out lines. High Efficiency Tech mixed with Greed at the upper levels of management is a great way to turn that masses into slaves.
I'm seeing this now. Agreed. Check out www.zipskinny.com and take a look at those numbers. Don't know how accurate they are, but the unemployed, and below poverty line numbers in areas that 'used' to be loaded with manufacturing, chemical producers, and industrial products have changed big time.
for 2 years at what % of their after tax salaries + other government benefits because of unemployment or reduced income. how many will be working off the books?
They were actually offered $15.50/hour, got to retain their seniority and also could get up to $35,000 as compensation for reduced package. $15.50 and hour is $620/week, a lot more than $390 and with OT these guys can rake in even more. The days of line workers making over $100K are gone for good. And years ago when I worked in the auto industry I was aware of production workers making as much as $120K/year with OT. I also saw UAW guys sleeping on the production line with no consequence. And for those who are unaware, last week Chrysler fired 13 line workers for drinking and smoking pot on their breaks. This kind of stuff happened years ago with no impact on the guilty parties.