EFCA

The campaign against the Employee Free Choice Act is now in full swing. The so called Campaign for American Prosperity has enlisted no less than Joe the Plumber to campaign against the bill which would make it easier for workers to form unions. There are a couple ironies here. First, I do not understand how prosperity follows from making it harder for workers to bargain for better wages and benefits. Part of our current economic situation is the fact that workers in the middle of the economy have seen their wages stagnant over the last thirty years while the earnings near the top of the economy have soared. (With a short reprieve from 1992-2000.) This drives down their consumption and creates a downward spiral in wages.

Second, had Joe ever been a union member, he perhaps would have not found himself unemployed, poor and with multiple tax liens. Had he joined the plumbers union, he might actually have been a licensed plumber instead of a $7/hr hack. Maybe Joe would have had a decent job that would have saved him from the embarrassment of his current career as a reality-tv-show-contestant-in-waiting. Of course unions don't solve everything. Joe would still likely be obnoxious and ignorant. That just seems hard wired.

We want less Joes. Not more.