WORK ETHIC: PEOPLE VS CORPORATIONS
A Highly Worrisome Mindset And Trend Amongst The U.S.Voting Population
Published In The GLOBAL FUTURIST BLOGPublished In DOUGLAS E. CASTLE – OBSERVATIONS, THOUGHTS AND COMMENTARY
I received this item in a newsletter from MomsRising.Org just two days ago, and I found it understandable, but somehow disheartening and consistent with my intuitive feelings about the declining US work ethic. While I support the notion of paid sick days (for employees who have at least demonstrated certain other attributes at work than showing up on time on “well days”), it seems that the high prioritization and politicization of this issue well over other issues having to do with economic stimuli, jobs creation, productivity incentives, entrepreneurship credits and other positive pro-growth issues, all of which are critical to sustain the American Dream – or to attempt to bring it back into being – seems to be saying something about the mindset of the voters and perhaps the majority of the American populace:
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“It's time for a celebratory fist bump (more later on why a fist bump, specifically)!
Paid sick days WON BIG at the polls on Election Day — with nearly 1 million more workers gaining access to earned sick days in Massachusetts, Oakland, CA, and Trenton and Montclair, NJ, making it crystal clear that American voters overwhelmingly support paid sick days.
In fact, a whopping 81% of voters, across political parties, gender, and race, say it's important for lawmakers to consider paid sick days laws because they help keep working families economically secure. Woot! Time for another fist bump!
Now, it’s time for the next step: Taking paid sick days to Congress. This is a boost for families, our economy, and... our leaders. Why? Let’s be honest, Congress could use some popularity points right now (a poll found that lice are more popular than Congress!!!).
Since Election Day told us that paid sick days are VERY popular, and Congress needs a popularity boost, now is the perfect time to tell Congress about these popular paid sick days victories — and also tell them that we expect them to keep up the momentum for earned sick days while they’re back in session.
It’s a win-win!
Urge your members of Congress to prioritize paid sick days across the nation...”
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Here's is what I have concluded and am very concerned about as an economist, businessperson and entrepreneur:
Item 1: The emphasis is on employers and/or the government to make conditions easier for employees,
to care for them, to be responsible for them and to guarantee them careers irrespective of performance,
loyalty, longevity, innovation or attitude.
Item 2: Why aren't there more incentives for companies which create permanent jobs, and for employees who are superior performers, loyal, senior in longevity, innovative and demonstrating encouraging attitudes?
Item 3: Why are there less incentives and aid for solopreneurs, start-ups and small business in the form of tax benefits, grants and the like? The voting (there's no escaping politics, I know...) public doesn't want to assume responsibility for its work product – it wants to be coddled by corporations with a government to police this.
Item 4: Why isn't more focus being placed on the administration of employee pension and special tax- deferred pension and profit-sharing plans? Why is it required that companies (whom I tend to favor in many arguments – even if it makes me the devil's advocate at parties) only keep several years of anticipated pension payments actually funded [in accordance with current regulations], instead of fully keeping those those plans fully funded with the accumulated amount that they are going to owe? The average employee thinks that his or her fully-vested retirement plan and pay are fully-funded and keep in a segregated corporate account!
This is truly a reasonable expectation, and the regulations should provide for full funding of retirement amounts which will be due for all employees, with actuarial adjustments for employee post-retirement longevity? Why should a company be permitted to go bankrupt and escape its obligations to 20- and 25-year veteran employees? That is beyond just unfair. It is a death knell for good employees if their corporate employers want to go bankrupt as a matter of convenient escape from the rigors of responsible management and fair payment obligations! This is one of the only matters where I clearly favor the employee's well-being and expectations over those of Corporate America.
Item 5: Both the government and the major corporations have helped to destroy the U.S. Work Ethic by their unholy alliance in generally disregarding simple Human decency and compassion and displacing these intangible but valuable things with incentives for fiscal irresponsibility and fattening the wallets of the seniormost level of mismanagement (and members of their boards of directors with bonuses stolen from the employees and the taxpayers)... TARP anyone?
Proposed Direction And Course Correction: Corporations and employees must be educated to the advantages of a long-term alliance between them instead of a series of short-term skirmishes on an issue-by-issue provocation basis.
Douglas E. Castle
Item 2: Why aren't there more incentives for companies which create permanent jobs, and for employees who are superior performers, loyal, senior in longevity, innovative and demonstrating encouraging attitudes?
Item 3: Why are there less incentives and aid for solopreneurs, start-ups and small business in the form of tax benefits, grants and the like? The voting (there's no escaping politics, I know...) public doesn't want to assume responsibility for its work product – it wants to be coddled by corporations with a government to police this.
Item 4: Why isn't more focus being placed on the administration of employee pension and special tax- deferred pension and profit-sharing plans? Why is it required that companies (whom I tend to favor in many arguments – even if it makes me the devil's advocate at parties) only keep several years of anticipated pension payments actually funded [in accordance with current regulations], instead of fully keeping those those plans fully funded with the accumulated amount that they are going to owe? The average employee thinks that his or her fully-vested retirement plan and pay are fully-funded and keep in a segregated corporate account!
This is truly a reasonable expectation, and the regulations should provide for full funding of retirement amounts which will be due for all employees, with actuarial adjustments for employee post-retirement longevity? Why should a company be permitted to go bankrupt and escape its obligations to 20- and 25-year veteran employees? That is beyond just unfair. It is a death knell for good employees if their corporate employers want to go bankrupt as a matter of convenient escape from the rigors of responsible management and fair payment obligations! This is one of the only matters where I clearly favor the employee's well-being and expectations over those of Corporate America.
Item 5: Both the government and the major corporations have helped to destroy the U.S. Work Ethic by their unholy alliance in generally disregarding simple Human decency and compassion and displacing these intangible but valuable things with incentives for fiscal irresponsibility and fattening the wallets of the seniormost level of mismanagement (and members of their boards of directors with bonuses stolen from the employees and the taxpayers)... TARP anyone?
Proposed Direction And Course Correction: Corporations and employees must be educated to the advantages of a long-term alliance between them instead of a series of short-term skirmishes on an issue-by-issue provocation basis.
Douglas E. Castle
THE GLOBAL FUTURIST – Douglas E Castle
http://theglobalfuturist.blogspot.com
Discovering and following significant trends across an extensive range of domestic and international consumer, business, demographic, cultural, economic, political, technological and other key areas of influence and impact on life and business; predicting future change, preparing for it and profiting from it.
Key Terms: business, forecasting, trends, future, prediction, disruption, displacement, innovation, complexity theory, economic waves and cycles, projections, planning
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