What you write looks good on paper but as a retired serial entrepreneur who made payroll every two weeks for over 30 years, hired, trained and fired employees, the problem is in the execution. The execution will be driven by 'Wall Street'. The pressure finance puts on management makes long term thinking like yours pointless. You can't fix cancer with a band aid.
I really like the “Joint Labor-Management Committees.”
I worked in medical electronics in the last part of my career. I expected to see quality of a very high degree, that is not what I encountered as an electronics specialist. I did everything I could to change things internally, I was basically a gadfly.
My observation of failure like Boeing 737s suggests this is a widespread problem. There is evidence the FDA is corrupted. I suspect if I had been a whistle blower the FDA would have failed to act.
I don’t know how Joint Labor-Management Committees like in Europe can be implemented, given our current labor laws (Union regulations.)
I think things would have been different if a workers council could have taken up my concerns, and held managements feet to the fire as most of my concerns were actual violations of federal law, and violation of standard electronics engineering practices.
Your vision of labor unions is that of Samuel Gompers. This is why we have the Labor Day holiday in the first place. He wanted to separate the American labor movement from their European socialist counterparts who celebrate on May 1. But the American labor movement has changed so Labor Day should be abolished and they can celebrate on May 1.
Thank you for your clarity on this issue. The unbundling of issues is surely the democratic path. And for citing Adam Smith and John Stuart Mill, two thinkers of sharp intellects and kind hearts.
Well. Union leaders might just be taking the lead from the Corporate Boards and C Suites. Corporate Boards in particular, have a mandated fiduciary duty to represent the best interests of Shareholders. Instead, they waste time, money, and talent implementing DEI programs, supporting ultra radical organizations, and generally taking other similar actions which go directly against SH interest. Bud Light. Target. Home Depot. Harley Davison. Tractor Supply. All very recent examples of Boards and C Suites destroying SH value to satisfy the agendas of the woke NGOs who threaten them.
Perhaps if Boards and C Suites set better examples, Union leadership might follow.
Likely not. I certainly don’t disagree with your take on this issue. But a companion article bashing the woke Boards and C Suites might actually have a wider audience and more impact.
Union leadership can go woke, while a huge majority of their members ignore them. But when Boards and Mgt start supporting BLM and forcing their employees to do the same, they are working directly against the SH best interests. Which is a direct breach of their fiduciary duty.
There is one reason you may be overlooming why worker movements should care about politics- leverage. To get concessions from employers you need leverage, usually in the form of work stoppages and or immigration restriction. However, once you recognize that the capital allocation classes tend to have specific views on geopolitics, is it not foolish to oppose their interests on issues like Israel and Ukraine in order to give yourself more power at tbe bargaining table? I believe it is.
Well, the democrats took Wall St, Silicone Valley, Hollywood years ago and now the multi-nationals. It was pretty much cemented in during the Clinton years. The guy was slick! While the Republicans did nothing except support the rich guys. Seems the republican philosophy has been - if it wasn't for the rich, smart, moral business owner you others wouldn't even have a job. So, be glad you have a job and just get to work and be quiet.
The social causes are brilliant! Again, Clinton and his group perfected this! The guy could do politics! Didn't care about much else really but was unbelievable here. Divide and conquer. To use this properly you need eloquent speakers. The democrats have produced them. Republicans? didn't even show up! lol
One thing I see in this labor situation is your leadership is trained in the University. The university is the new religion!?
The religion of Nihilism.
And I think Jed's comment below is dead on. As a man who has been in the real world working, he knows the system. With an economic system run by the bankers (Federal Reserve, To Big to Fail Banks, P.E., hedge funds) and economists everything is short term thinking. Pump and dump.
The Republican party needs to come up with real ideas towards labor and start learning to control the narrative. Right now, they don't even understand the narrative. Get out of the ivory tower with the rich dudes and get in the streets. If not, learn how to barricade.
So are you all-anti-genocide or just half-anti-genocide? Curious.
I've never called for genocide in my life. You'd probably say the same, but the folks who ignored Oct 7 or worse, support Hamas, even as they bleat about the deaths in Gaza, are still *sometimes* pro-genocide.
You’ve never called or genocide in your life; you just find ways to rationalize it by bringing up 10/7, or supporting Hamas, or some other nonsense. You probably opposed South African apartheid, but ignore the Israeli one.
“Israel isn’t responsible for the existence of western warmongering, western warmongering is responsible for the existence of Israel. If there wasn’t an Israel they’d just invent another excuse to sow violence and division in the middle east. Biden himself has acknowledged this, saying “Were there not an Israel the United States would have to invent an Israel to protect her interests in the region.””
Oh, we’re going to blame it on the West then? Rather than the violence inherent in one side, and the other side who became violent because the first side can’t just share the damn land with them?
I have said since college I’d like to hold a giant nuke over them and say, “You’ve got 24 hours to hammer out a lasting peace agreement or we turn the whole damn thing into a crater. No more Israel. No more Gaza.” I don’t advocate that in reality, of course….but it’s a nice fantasy.
Yes, we’re going to blame it on the West. This whole thing started by the real anti-Semites, in this case the British, wanting to banish the Jews from their island and dumping them in another.
It ain't Israel that is obstructing a peace deal. Going back to 1948 they have repeatedly agree to peace proposals. Those were routinely rejected by Arab governments until Sadat broke ranks (and was assassinated for it). With the coming of Trump and the Abraham accords you had a lot more movement by Arab governments. The whole thing has been put on ice since the war started which I suspect was the Iranian motive for inciting and funding Hamas.
What you write looks good on paper but as a retired serial entrepreneur who made payroll every two weeks for over 30 years, hired, trained and fired employees, the problem is in the execution. The execution will be driven by 'Wall Street'. The pressure finance puts on management makes long term thinking like yours pointless. You can't fix cancer with a band aid.
I really like the “Joint Labor-Management Committees.”
I worked in medical electronics in the last part of my career. I expected to see quality of a very high degree, that is not what I encountered as an electronics specialist. I did everything I could to change things internally, I was basically a gadfly.
My observation of failure like Boeing 737s suggests this is a widespread problem. There is evidence the FDA is corrupted. I suspect if I had been a whistle blower the FDA would have failed to act.
I don’t know how Joint Labor-Management Committees like in Europe can be implemented, given our current labor laws (Union regulations.)
I think things would have been different if a workers council could have taken up my concerns, and held managements feet to the fire as most of my concerns were actual violations of federal law, and violation of standard electronics engineering practices.
Your vision of labor unions is that of Samuel Gompers. This is why we have the Labor Day holiday in the first place. He wanted to separate the American labor movement from their European socialist counterparts who celebrate on May 1. But the American labor movement has changed so Labor Day should be abolished and they can celebrate on May 1.
how much are the zionists paying you?
What do you think about repealing Taft-Hartley?
Dear Oren,
Thank you for your clarity on this issue. The unbundling of issues is surely the democratic path. And for citing Adam Smith and John Stuart Mill, two thinkers of sharp intellects and kind hearts.
Yours,
Danny
Well. Union leaders might just be taking the lead from the Corporate Boards and C Suites. Corporate Boards in particular, have a mandated fiduciary duty to represent the best interests of Shareholders. Instead, they waste time, money, and talent implementing DEI programs, supporting ultra radical organizations, and generally taking other similar actions which go directly against SH interest. Bud Light. Target. Home Depot. Harley Davison. Tractor Supply. All very recent examples of Boards and C Suites destroying SH value to satisfy the agendas of the woke NGOs who threaten them.
Perhaps if Boards and C Suites set better examples, Union leadership might follow.
Likely not. I certainly don’t disagree with your take on this issue. But a companion article bashing the woke Boards and C Suites might actually have a wider audience and more impact.
Union leadership can go woke, while a huge majority of their members ignore them. But when Boards and Mgt start supporting BLM and forcing their employees to do the same, they are working directly against the SH best interests. Which is a direct breach of their fiduciary duty.
There is one reason you may be overlooming why worker movements should care about politics- leverage. To get concessions from employers you need leverage, usually in the form of work stoppages and or immigration restriction. However, once you recognize that the capital allocation classes tend to have specific views on geopolitics, is it not foolish to oppose their interests on issues like Israel and Ukraine in order to give yourself more power at tbe bargaining table? I believe it is.
Well, the democrats took Wall St, Silicone Valley, Hollywood years ago and now the multi-nationals. It was pretty much cemented in during the Clinton years. The guy was slick! While the Republicans did nothing except support the rich guys. Seems the republican philosophy has been - if it wasn't for the rich, smart, moral business owner you others wouldn't even have a job. So, be glad you have a job and just get to work and be quiet.
The social causes are brilliant! Again, Clinton and his group perfected this! The guy could do politics! Didn't care about much else really but was unbelievable here. Divide and conquer. To use this properly you need eloquent speakers. The democrats have produced them. Republicans? didn't even show up! lol
One thing I see in this labor situation is your leadership is trained in the University. The university is the new religion!?
The religion of Nihilism.
And I think Jed's comment below is dead on. As a man who has been in the real world working, he knows the system. With an economic system run by the bankers (Federal Reserve, To Big to Fail Banks, P.E., hedge funds) and economists everything is short term thinking. Pump and dump.
The Republican party needs to come up with real ideas towards labor and start learning to control the narrative. Right now, they don't even understand the narrative. Get out of the ivory tower with the rich dudes and get in the streets. If not, learn how to barricade.
I have zero problem with any effort to call attention to and oppose a genocide.
Walk, chew gum.
That said, I agree with a good bit of what you write. But the game is over. The corporate coup is complete.
I think it's only acceptable to call for an 'end to genocide' in Palestine if one was doing that for Israel on October 8th.
Mostly, calls for 'end to genocide' on this issue are lefties 'acceptably' playing the anti-Semite card.
So you’re a deflecting genocide apologist. Gotcha.
Time to grow some sense, in addition to labia.
So are you all-anti-genocide or just half-anti-genocide? Curious.
I've never called for genocide in my life. You'd probably say the same, but the folks who ignored Oct 7 or worse, support Hamas, even as they bleat about the deaths in Gaza, are still *sometimes* pro-genocide.
The Global Council of Imams has condemned 10/7 so I guess your opponent here is more anti-Jew than that.
Oh good, at least there are some Palestinian supporters who aren’t complete anti-Semites. You won’t find many on college campuses.
Take your anti-Semites BS and shove it.
You’ve never called or genocide in your life; you just find ways to rationalize it by bringing up 10/7, or supporting Hamas, or some other nonsense. You probably opposed South African apartheid, but ignore the Israeli one.
https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/stop-doing-genocide-is-the-most-reasonable
“Israel isn’t responsible for the existence of western warmongering, western warmongering is responsible for the existence of Israel. If there wasn’t an Israel they’d just invent another excuse to sow violence and division in the middle east. Biden himself has acknowledged this, saying “Were there not an Israel the United States would have to invent an Israel to protect her interests in the region.””
I didn’t get past the first ridiculously biased paragraph with this article. Give me a f**king break.
No break for idiot Zionist zealots, you twit.
Oh, we’re going to blame it on the West then? Rather than the violence inherent in one side, and the other side who became violent because the first side can’t just share the damn land with them?
I have said since college I’d like to hold a giant nuke over them and say, “You’ve got 24 hours to hammer out a lasting peace agreement or we turn the whole damn thing into a crater. No more Israel. No more Gaza.” I don’t advocate that in reality, of course….but it’s a nice fantasy.
Yes, we’re going to blame it on the West. This whole thing started by the real anti-Semites, in this case the British, wanting to banish the Jews from their island and dumping them in another.
https://www.counterpunch.org/2024/09/04/lethal-joy-dances-with-lethal-idiocy/
It ain't Israel that is obstructing a peace deal. Going back to 1948 they have repeatedly agree to peace proposals. Those were routinely rejected by Arab governments until Sadat broke ranks (and was assassinated for it). With the coming of Trump and the Abraham accords you had a lot more movement by Arab governments. The whole thing has been put on ice since the war started which I suspect was the Iranian motive for inciting and funding Hamas.