Outsourcing not the way to go

[OhioChick]

Issue date: 11/13/08 Section: Opinion

I've decided to take this economic crisis and turn it into a bittersweet comedy. Really, how else can we get through the days ahead?

It's just awesome to me that a huge reason we're in this mess to begin with is the lack of income and employment for our (huge) population, and no one has suggested that the corporate giants bring our jobs back from China and India. Not to mention from the computers.

I'm not racist or anti-modernization, I'm just trying to be logical. To bring it down to scale: 10 Americans rely on the American corporation ThisPlant, Inc. for their daily bread. ThisPlant, Inc. discovers that it only has to pay workers in third world countries $3 per day, where the American workforce demands minimum wage.

With the exception of two workers, ThisPlant, Inc. fires all of its American employees and replaces them with foreign outsourcing. This is not a humanitarian argument. I'm not even going to go into the working conditions and child labor in third-world countries plus the pathetic living conditions one can acquire on $3 per day.

This is strictly economic. So, the other 8 employees-honest, hard working Americans-try to find employment and find themselves deeper and deeper in debt until they can no longer afford ThisPlant, Inc.'s products. And you can forget the foreign workers putting their money back into the plant. ThisPlant, Inc. announces having to close 600 stores nationwide. The punchline? We're surprised.

At least Wal-Mart's doing well. Right?

In case it's still unclear, I've composed a letter that I think sums up my point:

Dear Corporate Retailers: Surprise! Sending jobs overseas means that: a) you save some money (when you weren't hurting for it in the first place) in the short run, b) Americans lose jobs, and eventually get to the point where we can no longer afford to shop in your stores, and c) your decision to outsource jobs reveals itself to have been you shooting yourself in the foot! You might as well have hung a sign that said, "Just go to Wal-Mart; soon it'll be the only place you can afford anyway!" Happy Holidays, The Labor Force.


http://media.www.studentprintz.com/media/storage/paper974/news/2008/11/13/Opinion/Outsourcing.Not.The.Way.To.Go-3540758.shtml

[Azlady]

1. Excellent Article... n/t

[OneBlueSky]

2. how about a federal law that mandates . . .

that the help desks of consumer products companies selling their goods in this country must be located in this country? . . .

[ihavenobias]

3. K & R

[ChromeFoundry]

4. K&R n/t

[FredStembottom]

5. tariffs, tariffs, tariffs.

Tax ThisPlant's products as they enter the US. If it costs ThisPlant 89 cents of labor to make their product in China - but $1.89 in labor here..... they get taxed $1.00 per.

Viola! Level playing field - and lots of NewPlants that will simply produce here to avoid the costs of all that now pointless container shipping across the ocean.

Bam! Economic recovery day after tomorrow!

[OhioChick]

6. Agreed. n/t