SEARCH
Managers, Not Workers, Overpaid in Manufacturing Jobs |
|
 |
|
Some pundits and lawmakers—Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) comes to mind—falsely claim that union workers are overpaid and are to blame for the decline of U.S. manufacturing. But a new report, released last week by the Economic Policy Institute (EPI), busts that myth and shows the convenient conventional wisdom to be wrong.
EPI economist Josh Bivens lays out the facts in Squandering the Blue-Collar Advantage, which show that U.S. manufacturing’s blue-collar workforce, far from destroying U.S. competitiveness, is actually one of the key elements making a positive contribution to competitiveness—a contribution being undermined by a variety of other factors. Click here to read the entire report.
Says Bivens:
If the story of U.S. manufacturing began and ended with its blue-collar workers, the outcome would be far different from what we’re seeing today. In hourly pay and productivity, U.S. manufacturing workers give their companies a significant competitive edge—one that is being drained away by other negative forces.
Bivens identifies three key factors undermining U.S. competitiveness:
- The overvalued U.S. dollar, which artificially drives up the price of U.S. goods abroad and drives down the cost of foreign-produced goods here. Over the past 10 years, this imbalance alone has created a 10 percent to 16 percent cost disadvantage for U.S. goods, compared with the previous decade.
- The high cost of U.S. health care is another significant factor. Reducing these costs to the same level as our comparable trading partners could create a 4.6 percent cost advantage.
- U.S. managers—not workers—are overpaid. Bringing white-collar wages in line with those in comparable countries could result in a 6.4 percent cost advantage for U.S. manufacturers.
Bivens adds:
If we want to restore the strength of U.S. manufacturing in our economy and in the world, we have to address the real anti-competitive factors that are dragging it down. In this effort, the wages and productivity of the unionized blue-collar workforce are an important asset.
7 Comments
Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.
I think the fall of a lot of companies in our country is that CEO’s are paid way too much and that the government is letting other companies buy out the US.
Corker’s and idiot and hypocrite. He only cares about himself and rich people.
In order to be truly effective with your arguments, I suggest that you do further research and site more objective statistical sources. EPI does have credibility, but you would make a much stronger argument using information from sources that are not biased nor had a definite mission. I am strongly pro-union, and often am in discussions with those who are strongly of an opposing view. I want the information to combat their arguments. Please give me more objective stats.
And what organization do you know of that does not have a bias or a definite mission? There are so many “front” organizations giving us misinformation it is not funny. If EPI’s perspective is that of a view from the street (my phrasing) and their findings tend to fit rather well with the facts and realities of the conditions of lower/middle class Americans (which I and my class experience directly - objectivity?) then I would see their research findings credible and usable with which to argue or educate. I too am a union member and strongly support unionism. I would advocate for more than unionism however and seek criminalization of much of the corporate and political behavior that legitimizes the economic rape of stockholders and the American public who were, indeed, willing to trust the wall street/political criminals and invest in America. Having achieved these goals, I would then call for public hangings (said with only a small amount of tongue in cheek)
All the information I need to take a stand is that corporate CEO”S are paid in six to seven figures while I try to survive on $40,000 annually!
Apologists for unleashed capitalism are not interested in facts! All they care about is protecting the status quo! Working people have NO reason to explain the need for organizing unions other than it is in our class interest to organize! History has proven this over and over.
If company executives and CEO’s did not have an economic advantage to let their companies deteriorate, then ship them overseas and hire people for much lower pay, then we would still have companies here, run by executives that realize if their company fails here, they will have no one to blame but themselves, and our government is NOT going to give them huge tax breaks and incentives to outsource. It’s Economics 101. Any middle schooler could figure this out. Our economy has been manipulated by greedy idiots.
these posts contain considerable truth, addressing segments of problems faced by working people.
i’ve been watching a pair of films which put the phenomena of failing economics, war, gov’t, 911, banking, global economy in the context of a bigger picture. tough to digest, wishing them wrong, these two films nonetheless put together a cohesive interpretation of where we are heading, how we got here and why. in my mind, pretty plausible. unfortunately.
the movies are ZEITGIEST: THE MOVIE and ZEITGEIST: ADDENDUM. http://www.zeitgeistmovie.com/ - 8k
the re-mastered 2007 movie is available to watch via the above site, without charget. i’ve seen it in its entirety and feel it holds much truth. it may push a few buttons. the 2008 addendum is also available at the same site. i’ve watched just the 1st half hour of this. each film is standard (if there is such a thing) movie length. received “best activist film” awards.
watch them with an open mind and let me know your reaction. should spark good discussion. certainly food for thought. . .