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Declining worker power vs. rising monopoly power: explaining recent macro trends

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Re: Declining worker power vs. rising monopoly power: explaining recent macro trends

#41

Post by altvali »

rapsey wrote: post #37
RcouF1uZ4gsC wrote: post #27

The big issue is supply and demand. With increasing automation and global supply chains, there is a huge amount of labor available relative to the need. In the past, a union strike at a plant would see a generous long-term contract and benefits for the workers. Now, it is likely for the plant to be moved or workers replaced with automation.

Automation is a drop in the ocean compared to the effects of trade agreements that resulted in jobs being exported.

Could you back that up with data? I'm curious to know by how much and how you reached that conclusion.

Re: Declining worker power vs. rising monopoly power: explaining recent macro trends

#42

Post by xnyan »

tryptophan wrote: post #24

[flagged]

>This seems like a political piece

Politics is the study of how power is distributed in a society. By definition, almost everything you could discuss involves politics.

Complaining that something is "political" usually means "I have everything I need with regards to power distribution in society, why are you wasting my time talking about what you want?"

Re: Declining worker power vs. rising monopoly power: explaining recent macro trends

#43

Post by toomuchtodo »

whatshisface wrote: post #38
toomuchtodo wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The Federal Government can deficit spend to invest in any necessary infrastructure or supply chains (funded by central bank operations), if the wealthy fail to do so. There is too much capital chasing too few returns, which indicates capital has lost a lot of its value.

Are you suggesting that the federal government start a federal hedge fund, or are you suggesting that they directly operate industries? Neither one sounds very efficient, especially given the government we're talking about here. (How satisfied are you with the current administration? How much more power should they have?)

The Federal Government operates Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the largest mortgage GSEs. The Federal Government operates the largest military in the world. I am suggesting the Federal Government take whatever actions are necessary to ensure and protect a functioning economy, whether that's acting as a consumer or producer of last resort.

I am aware of the devil's arrangement this is with the current administration. This administration, like all administrations, is temporary.

Re: Declining worker power vs. rising monopoly power: explaining recent macro trends

#44

Post by ChuckNorris89 »

pydry wrote: post #32
whatshisface wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Wait, so if there were some elites in charge of everything, and if they felt personally threatened, you are suggesting that their response would be to decrease the power of their security forces? Wouldn't they want to make the police even more powerful?

Yes of course they'd want that, but compromise is often a necessity to prevent things from spiraling totally out of control. The French and Russian revolutions are a testament to what happens when the ruler tries to effect the appearance of compromise without actually doing it (e.g. Constitution of 1906). It ended very badly for the rulers in both of those cases. They fucked up a lot more than just that, but that was…

The difference is in the times of the French revolution, the elite lived only mere miles away from the angry poor, within striking reach of their wrath whereas now the elites can move to super safe heavens, isolated from the mess they created and suffer no consequences from the angry masses.

Jeff Bezos and Warren Buffett can move with their families to some private island in the Caribbean and wait while things cool down while running their gigs remotely.

The French elite had no such luxury.

Re: Declining worker power vs. rising monopoly power: explaining recent macro trends

#45

Post by jakozaur »

In almost all USA industries, there is increasing amount of consolidation. The top 4 companies' in almost any industry has a larger share of the total market: https://www.economist.com/briefing/2016/03/26/too-much-of-a-...

Some consolidation is natural, but a huge part is caused by mergers and acquisitions (M&A) fulled by Private Equity. The M&A benefits the shareholders of participating companies at the expense of consumers, employees, and other companies.

Re: Declining worker power vs. rising monopoly power: explaining recent macro trends

#46

Post by whatshisface »

toomuchtodo wrote: post #43
whatshisface wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Are you suggesting that the federal government start a federal hedge fund, or are you suggesting that they directly operate industries? Neither one sounds very efficient, especially given the government we're talking about here. (How satisfied are you with the current administration? How much more power should they have?)

The Federal Government operates Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the largest mortgage GSEs. The Federal Government operates the largest military in the world. I am suggesting the Federal Government take whatever actions are necessary to ensure and protect a functioning economy, whether that's acting as a consumer or producer of last resort. I am aware of the devil's arrangement this is with the current administration. Thi…

Are Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, or the military, known for their cost-effectiveness or wise operation?

Re: Declining worker power vs. rising monopoly power: explaining recent macro trends

#47

Post by toomuchtodo »

whatshisface wrote: post #46
toomuchtodo wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The Federal Government operates Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the largest mortgage GSEs. The Federal Government operates the largest military in the world. I am suggesting the Federal Government take whatever actions are necessary to ensure and protect a functioning economy, whether that's acting as a consumer or producer of last resort. I am aware of the devil's arrangement this is with the current administration. Thi…

Are Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, or the military, known for their cost-effectiveness or wise operation?

Note how current "cost effective" supply chains have collapsed significantly [1]. Survival of certain supply chains, distribution networks, and institutions is preferable over a few percentages in cost savings.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_security ("National security or national defence is the security and defence of a nation state, including its citizens, economy, and institutions, which is regarded as a duty of government.")

Emphasis mine. Conversely, "efficient" businesses like Hertz (who ran at max capital leverage) are realizing the cost of doing so (including Carl Icahn, who lost $1.6 billion in the process). I think it's a bit silly to assume all private businesses are more efficiently operated than government (and does a grave disservice to hard working civil servants), but I'm happy to reply with bankruptcy after bankruptcy to prove my point [2].

[1] https://www.google.com/search?q=us+supply+chain+failure+covi... (Google search: US Supply Chain Failure Covid)

[2] https://www.forbes.com/sites/hanktucker/2020/05/03/coronavir... (Coronavirus Bankruptcy Tracker: These Major Companies Are Failing Amid The Shutdown)

Re: Declining worker power vs. rising monopoly power: explaining recent macro trends

#48

Post by brenden2 »

cheez wrote: post #12
brenden2 wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agreed, I (unfortunately) know many of these people. They simply don't understand the problem, and do not want to empathize with "the other side". It's worth trying to help others understand why people are angry. People need real help, police need to be held accountable, and we can't just keep shoveling cash into the pockets of the rich.

Not exactly. They know, but don't care. They believe they are disconnected from the consequences.

That may be true, but as someone who has been actually poor before, and have also known many people who were born into money, I don't think rich people really understand what it means to be poor, hopeless, and also discriminated against.

Re: Declining worker power vs. rising monopoly power: explaining recent macro trends

#49

Post by Taek »

specialist wrote: post #19

+1 Comparing wages to corporate profitability, valuations. Drives me nuts when these aspects are treated as completely unrelated. I'm still deeply ambivalent about redistribution, cashectomies, etc. But it'd a lot easier to remain neutral if there was (a lot) more profit sharing. Also, I have a hunch that gross inequity is related to the "missing productivity". I'm hoping someone is researching this.

It's a structural issue. Corporations are designed to extract as much value for shareholders as possible, paying employees as little as possible is a part of that. That includes all levels of compensation, such as awarding shares to employees.

Re: Declining worker power vs. rising monopoly power: explaining recent macro trends

#50

Post by sokoloff »

tryptophan wrote: post #24

[flagged]

I don't think anyone believes that "owning land entitles you to eternally increasing prices".

I think most people accept that owning land/buildings and renting it out to other people is an appropriate type of economic transaction to allow.

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