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Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Trickle Down Economics



This belongs on the political website. Maybe I will transfer it there tomorrow. It seems simple to me: if trickle down economics worked, then we would not have massive unemployment.President Bush gave those tax cuts to the wealthy, did not trickle down or create new jobs.

But I have been saying the same thing, even before GW was president. Mobile Chemical closed their plant in NJ to move south for cheaper energy costs. People who worked a lifetime of rotating shifts ruining their bodies were suddenly unemployed. Hoffman La-Roche laid off long-term employees. I was a temp worker, hired through Manpower at both companies. La-Roche hired a lot of temps like me. No benefits and cheaper labor.  Bill Clinton president at that time.

And, also when long-term employees lost jobs after Rite Aid bought Thrifty here in California around 1998. Wal-mart was one company that was hiring people as part time employees, though many worked minimum forty hour weeks. No benefits, but did get overtime if exceeding forty hours. 2002: Universal Care was planning to lay off sixty employees. I did not think I would be one of them, yet I am sure that influenced my terrible choice to quit, go east to help family.

I did not need this woman to explain it to me. Rite Aid? They replaced laid off employees with younger people at less pay than the life time Thrifty employees were getting. And they restructured, that is, job titles changed, less employees hired, one worker doing the work that used to be done by two.

Long Beach is among those who are laying off teachers, and closed an elementary school in their effort to balance the budget. Yet they have millions to spend on yet another breakwater study; and money to install new bicycle traffic lights, to go along with the new street bike lanes. Sad.

Think I may be able to fall to sleep now. 12:09PM

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