This is an interesting location in cyberspace. It is time to put employees first and focus not just on job creation, but on great job creation. How many people can live on the 7 bucks or so an hour that Wal-Mart gives most of its employees?
People in good to great jobs that pay well, become more productive and contributory to a powerful economy. With the evaporation of US jobs, we are only seeing a larger gap between rich and poor. The four hundred buck windfall provided by GWB really doesn't go far when you can't pay your rent.
Not only that, but the gov't is practically giving away cash for big box retailers to move product in from off shore increasing the trade deficit to never before seen levels.
Slice:
In this extensively researched study, we show that the giant retailer has received more than $1 billion in economic development subsidies from state and local governments across the country. Taxpayers have helped finance not only Wal-Mart stores, but also the company’s huge network of distribution centers, more than 90% of which have gotten subsidies. The report also includes policy proposals, including a prohibition on subsidies to big-box retailers except in distressed areas that are underserved by retail outlets (and in those cases the recipient of the subsidy should be required to pay a living wage.)
End of slice:
How about an end to corporate welfare before an end to social welfare?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
Level the playing fieldSingle-payer health insurance would go a long way toward making small manufacturers and retailers competitive. With health benefits provided by government, the little guy could afford to pay talent. In the long run, which may be too long for some, everything big is a dinosaur and ready to die. Currently, the rules by which dinosaurs play favor them. This is not their fault. They're just responding to the environment in which they live. Change the environment and the dinosaurs will go away. Attacking them directly doesn't work. (As near as we know, Tyranosaurus died for environmental reasons, not because there was something wrong with her technique at top of the food chain.)
In the interim, think of Walmart as America's best foreign aid program. We could give the Chinese money (Walmart buys 10 percent of Chinese exports), or jobs. Which is better for them? and why would we do less if we are sincere about helping people who need it, and who are serious about getting off their butts when we move to help them? It looks like win-win to me.
Post a Comment