Before class today (this has taken weeks to post) there was an intellectual struggle. Between good and evil? Perhaps not but an important topic of discussion. With “The World is Flat” down we have all read the concepts and heard about people being affecting, but we haven’t really discovered why. It’s happening yes, we can see what has happened but we all have our assumptions and theories. What is next? What questions are to be answered? Will I get that essay finished in time?
A very important factor in the globalization is the debate over the American Labor force. While world wide many countries experience a growth of jobs due to globalization some believe that the US is experiencing loss particularly in the manufacturing sector. While thousands of factory and labor jobs flee the US, miraculously unemployment in this country is at a low. Compounding the debate even more is the issue of immigration. Much of the immigration debate deals with immigrants working jobs that some believe “no American’s want.” It’s amazing just how vast the American economy alone is. Whatever can be said about anyone sector has a reaaction in another. While certain types of jobs are being outsourced and manufacturing is being offshored many factors play into the question… why?
We have found that through advances in technology it is easier today to communicate and collaborate, but how does that change the dynamic of the blue collar American worker? In all reality I think it has done very little. The rest of the world has started to catch up and specialize. Meanwhile American industry has “been hit hard.” But have we really? Is globalization really to blame or is it only a piece of the puzzle?
What is poor in America today? What is hard working in America today? The United States can often define luxury across the board, but are standards of living our rated lower than several countries (I think we are ranked 6). Everyday we hear about the poor in America, but when was the last time we defined what poor really is? Is it an income? A quality of life? I truly believe that if you ask what poor was you would get many different answers. The same goes for every class in our 3(ish) class society. Some may say a rich person makes $500,000 a year. Others may say a rich person makes $90,ooo year. That is quite a broad spectrum. What is middle class; I think that may require a dedicated blog entry itself. Most importantly though, what is poor and what is poor in America. While it is impossible to deny there is homelessness and often times hopelessness, poor in America is rich in thevast majority of the world, and often in very developed and prospering countries. Have you ever been to a house in America without electricity or a TV? Or less a hosue without access to clean or running water? While poor in America is nothing I aspire to or hope upon anyone, it is not the struggle for survival it once was or potentially could be.
As we have the luxury to complain in America how bad is it really. While jobs are shipped out and workers become unemployed, how much blame is ever placed on the American worker. It takes a brave individual (or any non politician) to simply say it often is our fault! While American’s work longer days than most of their European counterparts it is usually within a few hours a week difference. 40 hours a week is considered full. In unionized sectors higher than average pay and benifits are expected. But at what point is it deterimental to the American laborer.
My highschool built a new track over the summer. Southern Illinois is in a lot of ways unchanged by globalization. Many work labor jobs, standard weeks, and fight for benifits. Unions in this country are a brotherhood. There bond is strong but are there means always justified? When another union not in our town went on strike a sympathy strike was called. Workers “sacrificed” their hours for better circumstances for their brethren. After a long period of inaction our school was still trackless and alternative labor was found. The track was finished. The track is magnificient and rumored to be less expensive than the original labor estimated cost. The workers got paid for their unemployment by their unions (really paying themselves back in dues), but were detremental to themselves. Refusal to do more, and demands to get more is not the formula for success in any situation that I can fathom. Outpricing ourselves from the manufactoring sector or in any manual labor specifically (gardening, fast food, etc.) creates a void to be filled by someone else, whether its Mexicans in DC or Indians in Banglore. In response to my argument many would say that the American worker is under paid and needs a so called “living wage.” If we cannot possible pay our selfinduced demand, we cannot pay it. Bussinesses don’t survive living in the red because of manufactoring or labor costs. Its an evolution, survival of the fittest.
Out pricing by labor in the US is a major factor in the offshoring of manufacroting jobs. While US workers cannot compete with lowest wages in other countries with minimum wages in america, not all off shoring can be blamed on America and corporations.
In the recent senatorial debate between Allen and Webb, Webb mentioned globalization and its nasty effects on the american worker. Rather than embracing gloablization many politicians are scared of it. Fear is deterimental to our response and evolution. If we embrace globalization we can survive the nation’s job shift away from manufactoring and continue to lead the world economy.
