Pension plans frozen. Fewer employers providing free health insurance. It seems that more and more frequently those in the middle keep getting economically hit by something, and those at the low end have to struggle harder just to survive. Yes, there are those who use the system and play the 'poor' card to their advantage. But there are a vast number who are doing their best to improve their lot in life, and they keep getting knocked back by this and that change to the advantage of the wealthy (which is then supposed to somehow trickle down and improve the lot of the non-wealthy - haven't seen that happen yet).
Can't remember where I read this particular statistic, but the number sticks in my brain: CEO's and 'upper management' of large corporations, on average, make about 486 times what their average worker makes! There's something that feels so completely wrong about that disparity. I'm not saying that CEO's and upper management shouldn't have larger incomes. They do and should take on responsibilites that warrant 'big bucks'. However, much of the income which their businesses earn comes from the work of their employees, and those employees should be recognized more accurately for the value they provide to the business. One of the original values of the union movement was that it forced those business leaders to acknowledge that their income was the result of the work and safety of others, and that there was a value attached to that.
It's outrageous that the top management of Enron and other similar debacles will still have substantial assets even after serving sentences for their behavior, while their employees have lost jobs, pensions, health insurance and with little or no recompense for the losses they've suffered. It's outrageous that top leadership of companies undergoing bankruptcy receive millions in compensation, while their employees are expected to take pay and benefit cuts. It's outrageous that health insurance costs grow by such leaps and bounds that even employees with good incomes are forced to pay larger and larger shares of that cost (I'm not saying the costs shouldn't be shared. I'm just saying that a family shouldn't be bankrupted as a result of those increasing costs.) and that small businesses who truly want to support and reward their employees with this benefit are unable to do so because of the cost to their business.
I know there are a huge number of factors playing into the dynamics of this situation, some of them legitimate. I also know that there are CEO's and companies out there who make an effort to treat their employees equitably. It just seems that all too often it's the employee who has to make concessions while the employers come out in the same financial shape as before, or even better. That's wrong! To me, it's even more wrong when those employers present themselves as Christians. Somehow they've missed the point and slipped back into a biblical mindset which existed around the time of the writing of Job: if you're truly a good and honorable person then God's gonna reward you with things, a surplus of the toys/benefits that show the world God has picked you as a favorite. Hogwash! (Of course, at the end of Job, he gets everything back and then some, which blows the whole lesson, but I have a feeling that someone who just couldn't stand it that the things weren't the point added that on.)
And tying health insurance to one's employer makes things difficult for employees as well. What if you or a family member have significant (or even insignificant) health problems? It's not easy to up and leave an employer over other reasons if your health care might be terminated. Yeah - there's that 18month ERISA benefit. Have you ever had to pay the almost impossible premiums for continuing insurance when you don't have any income to pay with?! The resultant gap in coverage makes it virtually impossible to get 'pre-existing conditions' covered with a new employer, and the cycle goes on and on. And, if you're downsized from a position, then you're just plain up the creek!
Some form of universal healthcare is a resonable response. My mom pops in with 'but then there'd be rationing of health care if that happened'. *sigh* She just doesn't get it. There's already health care rationing - if you can't afford it, you don't get it, and there are way too many people who can't afford the premiums or the copays and just don't get the care they need and deserve as humans. (And health care rationing is even worse in Third World countries. *double sigh*)
The whole situation is just plain frustrating! And I don't see it getting any better at all over the next three years, if anything it will probably get worse. oh, well! Ranting didn't help any (and maybe that's a good thing). I'll have to do some thinking on that!
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2 comments:
I have long fantasized about an income tax system that would tax those outrageous CEO wages at an outrageous rate PLUS levy a separate outrageous tax on companies that pay them. The great tragedy is that these companies usually end up paying little or no real corporate income taxes, largely because those hefty paychecks are tax-deductible "expenses" to the companies.
When a handful of executives are making millions (or hundreds of millions) they aren't personally creating jobs, so the hard0-core conservative argument against taxes goes out the window.
And while we're on it ... is Howard Stern really worth $500 million in five years? Sheesh. A little profanity is valuable!
*chuckle* A man after my own heart! It's a wonderful fantasy! Maybe if enough of us dream it, (and then, of course, do whatever we can about it) it'll happen. One can always hope!
As to Howard Stern - pflbt! There's no way any motormouth is worth $100 mil/yr, much less someone who believes profanity is polite language. But there are people who enjoy him ... as long as I've got the choice whether to buy in or not, guess the market system is at work.
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