Manufacturing And Union Declines Have Hit Black Workers Especially Hard

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.laborradio.org/node/5393

Manufacturing And Union Declines Have Hit Black Workers Especially Hard - 03/02/07

By Doug Cunningham

African-American workers have been especially hard hit by the decline in U.S. manufacturing jobs. That’s according to a study from the Center for Economic and Policy Research, which says black workers have lost manufacturing jobs and suffered sharp drops in union representation. Economist John Schmitt says union representation for black workers is dropping faster than for the workforce as a whole. Manufacturing historically was a good path to the middle class for black workers, especially since World War Two. But Schmitt says today 16 percent of African-American workers are in unions. Twenty years ago it was over 25 percent.

AUDIO story here: http://www.laborradio.org/files/lo/winsheadlines.ram

[Esra Star]

1. It's time to introduce the enviromental/human rights

equalisation fee.
Because the countries that are taking the jobs are doing it by compromising
the environment and human rights, an equalisation charge should apply.
This would have the effect of increasing importing costs to more of the local
cost. The funds could and should be repatriated to the shortchanged people
and directly to environmental stabilisation.
Thus addressing three problems at once.
The cost of not proceeding in this fashion is not worth contemplating.