|
|
March 25, 1996
DR. HARRIS SUSSMAN ON COPING WITH ECONOMIC INSECURITY
Back in 1992, one of Bill Clinton's successful campaign themes was summed up in the pithy phrase: "It's the economy, stupid." Four years later, economic issues are still on the minds of voters, and the lips of politicians.
Experts are not in agreement over the health of the U.S. economy, but since the late 1970's, there has been a growing gap between rising corporate profits and falling wages. Recently, dramatic downsizing at major corporations has caused 63,000 layoffs at IBM; 50,000 at Sears; 28,000 at Boeing; and 40,000 at AT&T. As these jobs vanish, the typically American sense of prosperity and economic security also diminishes.
Last week the NewsHour took a look at American economic insecurity and the wage-profit gap. Now, Dr. Harris Sussman, who appears tonight in part five, answers your questions on coping with job-loss in the family, insecurity and other emotional problems caused by changes in the U.S. and global economies.
What do you think? What can be done for people who lose their jobs? What are we to make of shifting definitions of corporate responsibility and company loyalty?
----------------------------------------------------
A question from Ricardo Lopez-Torrijos of Albany, NY
Are small businesses, more tightly linked to the local communities a better balance between a healthy economy and job stability, (i.e. when compared to large multi national corporations?) Are market rules such as credit, access to elected officials and the ability to influence legislation biased against small businesses?
Dr. Sussman responds:
Yes, small business is usually much more responsive to, and tied to, local conditions--larger firms are not accountable to national authority, much less local -- with some exceptions; like McDonald's in Burlington VT. But that depends upon citizen activism. Well, the market dynamics you mention are often quite local--small business starts at home, literally, and with your local Chamber of Commerce, networks of relationships with other small businesses, etc.
-----------------------------------------
A question from Lisa Gindy of Portland, Oregon
I have seen commercials for the new union, Unite. Do you know anything about it? And why haven't unions been able to do something about declining wages and the growing gap between the salaries of the top CEOs and the lowest paid employees?
Dr. Sussman responds:
Yes, Unite is an attempt to have a post-industrial union approach. You should also look at the New Party, the Greens, a new group called the Alliance...unions could try something linked to multiples of highest to lowest pay, something that Ben & Jerry's did--you know their policy about nobody making more than 7 times what the lowest paid worker got...but they have moved away from that; you could ask them why....
---------------------------------------
A question from Richard Sherman of Kent Connecticut
I don't understand what the big deal is. The economy is the strongest it has been in years. Obviously these "overpaid" executives are doing a good job. To compete in a world market they have to make their companies lean and mean. Would you rather they go out of business?
Dr. Sussman responds:
What you call "THE ECONOMY" is a selective measure. It doesn't look so good if you review various other indexes of quality of life. How can U.S. economy be strong and U.S. have highest rate of adult illiteracy in the world, highest rate of child poverty, be #22 in infant mortality, highest rate of drug addiction, highest AIDS deaths, highest teenage pregnancy, highest debt of college graduates, highest rate of prisoners, etc.???
---------------------------------------
A question from Clark Mayer of Brunswick, ME
Aren't complaints of corporate loyalty naive? Employees are hired to make a system work, and not as some kind of emotional support group. Are people looking for corporations to fill the void left by the break-down of American communities.
Dr. Sussman responds:
Well, naivete is relative, depends on your mood, doesn't it? Some people indeed thought they were part of a team, if not a community, if not a family...not necessarily to fill a void but to provide another dimension of common purpose. Corporations are supposed to be beholden to, accountable to, the social good. That's how corporate charters are written but not enforced. Corporations are supposed to be social contracts. If that sounds quaint or odd, it shows how far we've come/gone since those laws were written at the beginning of the Republic.
-------------------------------------------
A question from Lindy Russell of Pasadena, CA
Dr. Sussman,
I feel companies who provide employee training & apprenticeship programs can maintain a strong educated work force that will grow with the organization. I fear that too many corporations do not invest in their employees, and would rather lay off workers and bring in new hires with the desired skills.
Isn't this more costly in the long run for an organization rather than to provide a long time productive employee with the need skills to stay competitive in today's market?
I'd like to hear you address the pros & cons of employee training vs. employee turnover.
Dr. Sussman responds:
Well, many companies spend/invest $2000 a year per employee in training/orientation. I understand you can't get a MacDonalds franchise until you do two years of apprentice/training. My view is that "the workforce" is a common resource, and should be treated that way--which it isn't. In other words, it would be in everyone's interest to invest in education (not training) because what goes around comes around. Employee training is usually pretty operational, short term, and shallow. People would have to be on a training treadmill that never stops.
-----------------------------------------
A question from Kathleen Ma of Denton, Texas
Hi, my name is Kathleen and I go to the University of North Texas. I will graduate in the fall of '96, and I wanted to know what are my chances of finding a good and decent job. I hope to find a job that pays me enough so that I can pay back my student loans. As a college student, I feel insecure about the job market out there. Just listening to companies like AT&T downsizing and laying off their employees scares me to death. Why are companies like AT&T laying off so many people recently? is it because they are not making any profits?
With regards to computers, how important is technology to economic security? I have realized that it is important to have basic computer skills, but will it determine whether I will be laid off or not?
Dr. Sussman responds:
You have a lot of questions there. You can go to work for a large company, but do it with your eyes open. plan to move around to different employers. Keep making yourself valuable--remember, the more transactional your work, the more you will be replaced by software. You do not need basic computer skills in a traditional sense; you need to understand the nature of electronic informatics/telecommunications and stay three steps ahead of present practices. Computer skills will not determine whether you are laid off; it may well play a part in whether you are hired. You must have an e-mail address. AT&T is making more profits than ever.
-----------------------------------------
Additional Comments
Jim Leonard of Evergreen, Colorado
"The best job security in the world is to be competitive." Henry Wallace of Ford Motor Company to the management of Mazda Motor Company.
Since the early 1980's U.S. manufacturers, and later service companies, discovered that they needed to change their operating methods to compete with Japanese companies in global markets.
The hierarchical organization structures with "function chimneys" were slow, ineffective, and expensive. Most of the corporate downsizing since the mid-80s has occurred to become quicker, leaner, more agile. Many new practices must be adopted to become world class ( just-in-time, continuous improvement, employee empowerment, cross-functional training, self-directed teams, pay-for-knowledge, manufacturing cells, Internet and intranet literacy, etc.) The list of new practices is long and growing. Virtually none of these were known or in use in the 50s-70s.
For a company that is striving to become world class competitive, there still is a "social contract" between employees and employers. Employers must view their employees as valuable assets and treat them that way. Employees must commit to continuous learning and team-performance- excellence for the teams in which they are members. The greatest service that labor unions can now play is to press local school districts to provide relevant, high quality education for their graduates, and press employers to provide relevant, high quality training for their employees.
The answer to "What should people that lose their jobs do?" is: get training/education in the "world class competitiveness" areas. If your local community college or university does not offer programs in these areas, press them to update their curricula. If the schools don't they will be out of business in the near future also.
For those over 45, it is very difficult to duplicate previous middle-management salary levels. Frequently it is necessary to volunteer in a position for several months to demonstrate one's capabilities before a pay check shows.
----------------------------------------
Rick Sigrist of LaRue,Ohio
Unions are trying to raise millions of dollars to defeat Republicans as unions feel this will lead to job security. Do you believe this will happen? The past 20 years have seen wage stagnation. Why are Democrats and unions the only ones with answers. I believe they have NO answers to this problem.
-----------------------------------------
Brian S. Russell of Pasadena, California
A few years back you folks chronicled the demise of the Southern California aerospace industry. With solemn faces and somber voices you attempted to let America know that many of its most highly trained and experienced workers were suddenly "on the bricks."
Listening to the various Republican presidential candidates on the "News Hour" and reading their ruminations in the L.A. Times, it seems they still haven't got it.
Thousands of us found ourselves without employment for long periods, far longer than we'd ever experienced in our working lives (2 years in my case). And some are still looking.
The only thing that brought an end to the frustration was the fact that the great majority of us were able to fall back on the two most trusty props, education and experience. Most of us have moved into other, hopefully a little more stable, industries. And entry into those new jobs (not necessarily at the same levels we left) was basic education that shows that we can learn effectively new methods and experience in scientific and industrial disciplines that new employers expect can be transferred to new areas.
Since the day Bill Clinton introduced his Cabinet appointees, Labor Secretary Bob Reich has said time and time again, "Education and training means decent pay; education and training means worthwhile benefits; education and training means the American Dream." Doesn't anybody listen in the hallowed halls of Congress? Don't they ever look around and see how the real world outside the political fraternity really works?
You folks on the "News Hour" seems to be some of the few who seem to take notice of America's employment problems. Everyone else simply report the latest unemployment figures and let it go at that. Are Roger Rosenblatt and Paul Solman the only two commentators with the common sense to see the obvious, to understand a simple problem, to ask intelligent questions and look for answers that fit in the real world?
Please keep talking about it. Maybe someone will listen and the little light bulb will flash on over the Capitol and they'll finally get the message.
-----------------------------------------
Kathleen Creger of Oakland, California
We are always hearing in the news about taking personal responsibility, but what about corporate responsibility. After all the workers of America have done to fill the pockets of these corporate big wigs, I think it is time they met their responsibility to the workers who got them there. Instead of investing in big salaries for those at the top, how about making these corporations give something back? They should be investing in upgrading the skills and improving the education of the little guy who has been there for them. It is time to make a choice America. See "Foreign Policy," Fall 1995 "The Global Job Market." I am 28 years old and my husband and I have started our own business. I don't believe there is much out there for people in my generation in the big corporations. But, at the very least, they should stand by the workers who have been there for them all these years. Shame, shame.
-----------------------------------------
Roger Hand of Santa Clarita, California
It is time for liberals to quit fostering "hate the rich" campaigns, and it is time for conservatives to stop ignoring the corporate greed which allows corporate profits to skyrocket while wages decrease.
I am a die-hard conservative, who wants nothing more than to see the end of this idiocy brought about short-sighted politicians on both sides.
Yes we have to toss out Clinton and his ilk, but we also have to take a long hard look at corporations who have bought into world trade at the expense of their (and our) own birthrights.
We are killing the middle class, and when all is said and done, we have no one to blame but ourselves for letting it continue....
-----------------------------------------
Joe Clarke of Akron Ohio
Americans are losing manufacturing jobs to foreigners! Joe Blue Collar knows it, but the media and academic elite still does not get the clue.
America (especially the bottom half) has lost more than it has gained through GATT, WTO and NAFTA.
Even if it means tariffs and more rivalry between American manufacturers, let it be.
Americans are sick and tired of losing their (and getting paid less) jobs to those abroad.
Click to see a Forum Menu.
 |
        |
|
| Support the kind of journalism done by the NewsHour...Become a member of your local PBS station. | ||
| ||
| PBS Online Privacy Policy Copyright ©1996- MacNeil/Lehrer Productions. All Rights Reserved. | ||
| ||
