This is what I don't get, people who say lower priced goods are more important than paying workers more.
We have a bunch of new jobs coming in warehouse work, retail, information & technology and what group ensures they get good pay and benefits? To a certain extent we can rely on competition, but with companies growing after larger and more powerful, and willing to collude[0], those jobs will likely get worse with time or start out crappy.
This is pretty evident with the economic problems starting in the 70's then the rise of neoliberalism in the 80's and stripping unions of powers.[1] What's even more perplexing now is in the last decade we have a growing economy but it's limited to the upper class. I think there is definitely space for us to have unions and fight for more of that growth to benefit the working class.
We have a bunch of new jobs coming in warehouse work, retail, information & technology and what group ensures they get good pay and benefits? To a certain extent we can rely on competition, but with companies growing after larger and more powerful, and willing to collude[0], those jobs will likely get worse with time or start out crappy.
This is pretty evident with the economic problems starting in the 70's then the rise of neoliberalism in the 80's and stripping unions of powers.[1] What's even more perplexing now is in the last decade we have a growing economy but it's limited to the upper class. I think there is definitely space for us to have unions and fight for more of that growth to benefit the working class.
[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-Tech_Employee_Antitrust_L...
[1] http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/01/25/upshot/shrinki...