Trying days for labor

If Karl Marx woke up Rip Van Winkle style in America today, he would probably wonder if he overdid himself. He would have found out that Chrysler is slated to be 55 percent owned by the UAW and government is set to own 50 percent of General Motors and labor owning the next big chunk. The banks, of course, could probably not exist another day without the bailout from Uncle Sam and may even end up formally nationalized. Who would have thought America could be forced to replicate the Soviet economic model without an armed revolution? Somehow, anyway!

It isn’t as if all these are happening for the first time in America. The legacy airlines have been moving in this direction for years. Labor has taken a stake in airline boards, notably United. Labor ownership of equity with representation in the board of directors was one of the means used to help airlines with high legacy labor costs to move out of bankruptcy courts. Labor ownership was a means to address high legacy labor cost, a significant factor in reducing competitiveness.

In a sense, what is happening to the American auto and airline industries can partly be attributed to organized labor losing sight of their company’s business. The labor unions became too successful winning concessions from management who apparently found it easier to say yes to every demand. When the more efficient competitors came to the scene, their cost structures became untenable.

But is this compromise formula of labor ownership of the business going to work? I was watching Bloomberg TV as some experts expressed doubt. In the first place, what Chrysler needs now is cold cash and a majority of labor in the Board is not going to provide that. There is also the question of whether the labor representatives can shift their mindsets from being labor advocates to profit managers. They may be too conflicted to succeed. The experience in United, one expert said, showed that the partnership required a drastic change in corporate culture and it only worked when the going was good.

As for government owning a major industrial enterprise in General Motors, it is obvious that the Obama administration is very uneasy about it but finds no other option. The future ability of the US government to unload its shares of GM stocks will have to depend on how fast the economy recovers and how effectively GM reinvents itself to be competitive. The prospect of that happening any time soon is not great. Things could get worse. In fact, even for the banks, Uncle Sam may end up formalizing current participation by outright nationalizing a few of the big banks.

For us back here in the Third World, labor will continue to take the back seat for so long as the economy remains as backward as it had always been. Labor groups, notably the ones led by the left, will continue to make a lot of noise as part of an overall propaganda effort that the local communists think will enable them to overthrow our flawed democratic system. But the priorities of workers are far simpler — to have a job and communists at the helm is not going to give them that. Even the more pragmatic communists in Beijing are having problems these days.

It is unfortunate that over 60 years of self rule have failed to develop an economy that is able to absorb the continuing surplus of labor coming off from the farm. Sadly, it is fair to say that our economy has deteriorated through the years. The supposedly temporary strategy of deploying our workers abroad has apparently become a permanent solution to local joblessness. Filipino children will have to grow up without their OFW parents to guide them for a long while yet.

The global economic crisis has also put a lot of organized labor on the spot as businesses struggle to survive. Confrontational tactics are counterproductive to current needs. Labor leaders will have to work closely with capital to preserve jobs and in extreme cases, participate in decisions to implement painful measures to save a business and a lot of jobs. Labor has little bargaining levers to work with these days, as the formerly extremely powerful American labor unions are finding out too.

So today we will likely see a lot of red banners and hear a lot of fiery speeches in commemoration of Labor Day. Ironically, for a majority of our workers who are paid by the day, the holiday would mean an inability to earn a day’s wage that is badly needed to feed a family that survives on isang kahig, isang tuka.

The best way to mark this Labor Day is for everyone to think that we are all in this business of creating and preserving jobs. Words in speeches and placards are cheap. Survival is everything… as the American autoworkers unions are finding out.

Kapitolyo

I was talking to Rizal Governor Ynares at the Tuesday Club this week and he told me that they have moved the provincial capitol to Antipolo already. They will completely vacate the present site in Pasig by July. They have to return the property to the Ortigases who donated it many years ago for use as a Capitol site but must be returned if it can no longer be used as such.

He said that because of the crisis, the financial partners of the Ortigases in redeveloping the 10- hectare property have backed out. He said he has not heard of a Plan B by the Ortigas group.

I thought the Ayalas had been tapped to be the Ortigases’ partner in developing that property. I can’t believe such a prime site will be snubbed by any developer under any economic environment. It is important that the site is responsibly developed for the sake of the community.

Speaking of Pasig, I cannot understand why the local government is allowing the utility company that wrecked a long portion of Meralco Avenue (from Vargas to Ortigas Avenue) to lay down pipes to get away not properly reconstructing what they had damaged. I thought utilities are required to put a deposit that would guarantee reconstruction before they are given a permit to excavate.

The haphazard way of reconstruction is a traffic hazard as vehicles try to evade potholes and navigate the uneven pavement. The patchwork reconstruction just cannot be. Or is the local government waiting for some tragic accident to happen before it acts?

E-mails

Here is an e-mail we have received from Narciso Limsiaco Ner, writing from Irvine, California, on the appointment of a new AFP chief of staff.

The announcement made by the Department of National Defense that the Commanding General of the Philippine Army, Lt Gen Victor Ibrado will be the replacement of retiring AFP Chief of Staff Gen. Alexander Yano is a welcome development. It is also a relief considering that there had been talks of some unprincipled officers being groomed for the position.

The Filipino nation has reason to celebrate because Gen Ibrado like Gen. Yano is also an epitome of a professional soldier…a true officer and a gentleman. Having known him when he was still a young Lieutenant, Gen. Bong (as he is fondly called by friends and senior officers) Ibrado has strictly followed and observed the military code of honor.

Although he is a scout ranger, a paratrooper, special forces and intelligence trained, he has remained soft spoken and mild mannered. But he is also a straight shooter. As far as I know he is not the who will sacrifice his integrity to be promoted. He has never lobbied for a position. He is also a member of an international organization which teaches its members to be just and upright and has truth as one of its principal tenets. May his tribe increase!

The better Dad

Artemio Tipon sent this one.

Three boys are in the school yard bragging about their fathers.

The first boy says, “My Dad scribbles a few words on a piece of paper, he calls it a poem, they give him $50.”

The second boy says, “That’s nothing. My Dad scribbles a few words on piece of paper, he calls it a song, they give him $100.”

The third boy says, “I got you both beat. My Dad scribbles a few words on a piece of paper, he calls it a sermon, and it takes eight people to collect all the money!”

Boo Chanco’s e-mail address is [email protected]