Monday, December 18, 2006
SBP's theory of the employer
Your employer does not give one iota about you.
Whether you work for government or the private sector, labour is seen as a cost of doing business and nothing more. If heads of corporations had a choice, they would replace you in a flash with robots if it meant making more for their bottom line. You are a number, and not much else.
There's a reason why there is legislated minimum wage. There is a reason why things like overtime, maternity leave and holidays are put in our labour laws. If they were removed, we would be at the mercy of what companies wish to pay us. Indonesian sewers get less than a buck an hour. Why? Because there are no labour laws, no unions and no protection for the worker. Businesses have no conscience when it comes to things like the exploitation of labour. Everything is profit driven, not ethically driven. No one in the boardroom says, "Well, we can employ people in the United States and pay them well and still make $5 billion in profit, even thought $250 million in profit is lost by hiring Indian child-labourers".
Some may say an employer's responsibility is only to the owners, that profit must be obtained at any & all costs. I disagree. Employers have a responsibility in the community they set up shop in to make it a better place. They must give back to the society they profit from. They should have a code of ethics ensuring they do not exploit the people or surroundings they interact with.
We take for granted what we have in this country. Generally speaking, most of my friends are paid well enough to buy homes, drive cars and raise their families. They can look forward to their weekends off and having some vacation time to allot themselves as they see fit. These things did not come easily, unions and human rights advocates worked extremely hard generations before us to ensure these rights have been granted & written permanently into law.
The entire world's population should be guaranteed these things, but they're not, and I can assure you the Wal-Marts and Coca-Colas of this world aren't going to do anything about it.
Whether you work for government or the private sector, labour is seen as a cost of doing business and nothing more. If heads of corporations had a choice, they would replace you in a flash with robots if it meant making more for their bottom line. You are a number, and not much else.
There's a reason why there is legislated minimum wage. There is a reason why things like overtime, maternity leave and holidays are put in our labour laws. If they were removed, we would be at the mercy of what companies wish to pay us. Indonesian sewers get less than a buck an hour. Why? Because there are no labour laws, no unions and no protection for the worker. Businesses have no conscience when it comes to things like the exploitation of labour. Everything is profit driven, not ethically driven. No one in the boardroom says, "Well, we can employ people in the United States and pay them well and still make $5 billion in profit, even thought $250 million in profit is lost by hiring Indian child-labourers".
Some may say an employer's responsibility is only to the owners, that profit must be obtained at any & all costs. I disagree. Employers have a responsibility in the community they set up shop in to make it a better place. They must give back to the society they profit from. They should have a code of ethics ensuring they do not exploit the people or surroundings they interact with.
We take for granted what we have in this country. Generally speaking, most of my friends are paid well enough to buy homes, drive cars and raise their families. They can look forward to their weekends off and having some vacation time to allot themselves as they see fit. These things did not come easily, unions and human rights advocates worked extremely hard generations before us to ensure these rights have been granted & written permanently into law.
The entire world's population should be guaranteed these things, but they're not, and I can assure you the Wal-Marts and Coca-Colas of this world aren't going to do anything about it.
# posted by SBP : 5:20 PM
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I agree whole heartedly!
MEC respects the environment, as well as the health, safety, and dignity of the workers who make their products. They go to painful lengths to select factories who project and are models of responsible business and labour practices and believe that supporting good practices at a factory level is part of a broader human rights solution.
And they're CANADIAN!!!
MEC respects the environment, as well as the health, safety, and dignity of the workers who make their products. They go to painful lengths to select factories who project and are models of responsible business and labour practices and believe that supporting good practices at a factory level is part of a broader human rights solution.
And they're CANADIAN!!!
# posted by 
: 7:03 PM, December 18, 2006
: 7:03 PM, December 18, 2006
I diagree with you on some points. I think most employers do care about their employees, at least in Canada. Generally I think the welfare of my friends and their coworkers are taken very seriously. Your right many countries do not have good labour laws, human right laws... Most likely because most of us covet.. Coca cola, LCD TVs, clothes, computers etc etc.
# posted by : 7:06 PM, December 18, 2006
: 7:06 PM, December 18, 2006
True, government is generally not profit driven, but the men in suits that are in charge have agendas. How come certain jobs still haven't gotten their due job review? Why do they roadblock this? Because they are just concerned about the bottom line. They ignore stress, increased job demands and high turnover and refuse to compensate appropriately.
I'm not bitter buddy. I just think big business is a cold-hearted machine and we have to be aware of that.
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I'm not bitter buddy. I just think big business is a cold-hearted machine and we have to be aware of that.
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