I completely agree too, there is no place for unions in modern working society; you just have to look at the situation British Airways are in to see that unions are living in a by gone era; granted, back in the day, they did us proud and we wouldn't have the rights as workers that we have now, but they have to get real .... companies have to take serious efficiency measures if they are to compete, and unfortunately that is likely to mean pay cuts and redundancies .. but it's better than the alternative .. i just don't understand why unions can't see this!
rdubnpk If we do meet, hopefully it will be at TTR and booze and boobs will dominate the conversation....
I would hope that most companies understand now that a working that doesn't have to worry about paying bills, their health, retirement, etc... is a productive worker. Any company that doesn't understand that deserves a union.
When the boom was going on here in Alberta alot of companies/business went belly up because they could not afford labour. We had a hard time keeping kids in school. I heard that Tim Hortons in Fort Mac were paying 18.00per hr + benefits for someone to pour coffee. There is no reason for unions any longer any company that isn't paying etc will not have any employee's, hence go belly up. The union is beyond reasonable. They had their place in time, but it should be over.
When Honda opened up a plant here in Ontario in the mid 80's the union tried to get a foot in but the workers told them to shove off. They already had good benefits, good wages and perks because the company already knew how to treat their employees well.
When I watch something like the video below, and consider the questions it raises about the loss of manufacturing in many countries of N America and Europe, I begin to suspect I don't really understand the net impact of globalization- especially when I consider other countries remain manufacturing powerhouses, like Germany. I'm aware that foreign companies have, in a number of instances, set up shop for manufacturing in the U.S., such as Honda. Why is it this process doesn't even out, somehow, and there be no net loss of jobs? Is underinvestment in education in the U.S. and England, in a time when higher skills is required of all, a leading cause? Britain's industrial decline - Europe - Al Jazeera English
V, I don't think education is at all an issue. When I started this thread I started it because of a concern I have for my daughter who is finding that much of the drug research for US companies is now done in China. Her PhD is from Johns Hopkins which has the highest rated graduate school in the US for bio chemists. Yet the drug companies will utilize the cheap labor of China rather than pay the $$ the US worker wants and needs. What I see is that the whole decline in manufacturing in the entire western world comes down to the Wal Mart mentality where nothing else matters but the bottom line. You site Germany as an example of what a manufacturing ecomony can do to compete. I think Germany is a tough example because Germans tend to be very nationalistic and will buy German first and much of their export business is in the rest of Europe where they tend to be very competitive. The US has so many things that hamper competition with foreign companies that it makes it very unlikely that the US manufacturing will ever return. When you consider wages, unions, OSHA, and the whole host of restrictions that don't exist in other countries I don't see North American manufacturing returning on anything other than items which can not be moved easily. Globalization was supposed to bring our standard of living, rightfully or wrongfully, to the rest of the world. Instead it seems like it is bringing the lifestyle of the rest of the world to the US.
