America’s labor unions’ pains

As the day nears for the U.S. Congress to consider granting China permanent normal trade relations, the Teamsters–through their boss James Hoffa–are pushing for its defeat, according to a commentary on “foreign affairs” by Thomas L. Friedman of the New York Times.

“In March, the Teamsters started lobbying the Clinton White House to award one of the Teamsters’ largest employers, UPS, a much sought after new air route for landing cargo planes in China.

“At the same time, the Teamsters have been lobbying against the administration’s effort to grant China permanent normal trade relations or entry into the Word Trade Organization, which would actually spur US-China cargo trade.

“‘It seems that the Teamsters want us to have more cargo flights to China, but no cargo’,” said one US official. They want more trade in empty boxes.

“This is almost as interesting as the dockworkers’ union marching in Seattle against more globalization and free trade, which is like the milkmen’s union coming out against cows.

“No trade, no dockworkers. No milk, no milkmen. But then you also have the United Auto Workers opposing the trade deal with China, which is strange since today virtually no US-made cars can be sold in China, but under the Clinton-negotiated WTO deal all US-made cars can be sold, financed and distributed in China.

The loss of manufacturing jobs in the US mainland to third world countries has been adversely decimated by the cost of US labor which far outpaces wages in Latin and South American and Asian countries. The recent shut down of Levi Strauss garment plants is a tale of how this revered American company has seen its profits plunge–and will continue to take a downward spiral–if it doesn’t relocate elsewhere.

How unfortunate that the cost of labor (high salaries) has forced American corporations to relocate their plants closer to the world’s largest consumers (Latin and South America and Asia) where the cost of labor is far cheaper than back home. Furthermore, third world country workers still produce the same quality items, i.e., surgical gloves for $6 a day versus $18 an hour at a recently closed US factory.

Well, the 603 groups of differing persuasions at the recent Washington, D.C. demonstrations were singing “We Aren’t the World”. They don’t have to agree on what they stand for to know what they’re against. It’s analogous to a flock of headless chickens running and bumping into anything and everything around them, including police officers.

For all we know, the Teamsters and other labor unions might just make it if they come to terms with the humongous benefits such an agreement would have on well poised American companies. “You let go of the door and we’ll empower you to better thrive with it open”.

****

Vietnam has a surplus of engineers. It definitely is poised to lure the establishment of high-tech industries in its once war-torn soil. It should be able to provide thousands of jobs for its people.

In contrast, the NMI has a surplus of politicians. It stands to reason, therefore, that it can lure scholars on policy and public administration to these isles. I mean, nobody on planet earth knows everything that is government except the indigenous people of these isles.

We know everything that is government as to have conceptualized (and this needs to be patented for intellectual property protection) “Advancing To The Rear!” You ought to see how this concept works when implemented side-by-side with, well, mañana. It’s an interesting phenomenon in that we see people from one end of the island to the other yawning–A` Saina!–out of boredom!