Unions Have A Big Hand In Every Troubled Industry Sector

By Richard West on March 14, 2010, 8:06 am

During the current economic crisis, everyone seems to be focused on the banking and loan crisis. No one seems to be asking hard questions about the automotive industry, which is a well known beneficiary of the massive economic bailout. They are the coal mine canary of our dwindling manufacturing and industry sectors. There is one key aspect that sets them apart: unions.

Unions Have Noble Roots

Labor organizations started as groups that struggled to ensure fair wages, safe working conditions, and other reasonable expectations of workers. They were aided by a number of wealthy, influential, and famous figures that sympathized with the plight of the common working man. They helped to ensure a healthy and productive environment for employees in all industries.

The Power Of Greed

World War II reshaped the face of the economy. Productivity reached all-time highs. After the end of the war, the heavy industrial infrastructure was put to use as an economic engine. During these boom times, the unions reasserted their political clout and pushed for increasingly unreasonable demands. Salary and benefit costs became prohibitive for companies, while productivity declined. This greed destroyed our manufacturing base, losing huge portions of heavy industry and steel production to Japan and third world countries.

 

The End Result

The industries preserved despite the unions have limped along, suffocating under the weight of union demands. During the ’90s and ’00s, industries have continued the trend of fleeing to Mexico, Brazil, and other nations. The recent bailout of the automotive industry is not the first. Other business sectors have also benefited from unfair bailouts, such as the airline industry which also struggles underneath union demands. In every troubled manufacturing and industry sector, the unreasonable costs of union demands has crippled their ability to produce in America with American workers. Labor is the highest cost for most businesses and when those costs are grossly inflates, the burden becomes unbearable.

Related posts:

1. Employment/Jobs: 37% Of Unions Are Now Government Workers
2. Would Having No Unions Drop The Unemployment Rates?
3. Unemployment: Nearly One-Third Of March Jobs From Temp Census Workers
4. Are Jobs Really Starting To Go In The Right Unemployment Direction?
5. Unemployment Extension: 100K Drop In Job Openings Says Labor Dept