FROLITICKS

Satirical commentary on Canadian and American current political issues

Apr 27

Biden Administration to Study Decline in Union Membership in U.S.

by bcurry

This past week, President Biden announced the formation of a White House task force to promote labor organizing in an attempt to potentially use the power of the federal government to reverse a decades-long decline in American union membership.  Some of this may have been brought on by the recent failed attempt by the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union to organize 6,000 workers at Amazon’s warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama.  Amazon has argued that its management did not threaten or intimidate workers.  However, past evidence has shown that Amazon is more than capable of dissuading its workers from joining a union in its more than 800 warehouses which employ over 500,000 people nation-wide.  While Amazon did not admit to violations of labour laws, the company promised in a settlement with federal regulators to tell workers that it would rigorously obey the rules in the future.  Good luck!

The historical decline in union membership in the U.S. is well documented.  The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said the total number of union members fell by 400,000 in 2012, to 14.3 million, even though the nation’s overall employment rose by 2.4 million.  The percentage of workers in unions fell to 11.3 percent, down from 11.8 percent in 2011.  By 2017, union membership was 14.8 million, representing just 10.7 percent of those workers.  The unionization rate for private-sector workers was only 6.3 percent in 2020, reflecting the net effect of declines in both the number of union members in the private sector and the steep drop in private-sector employment. 

Private sector membership particularly declined sharply in the manufacturing sector largely due to the reality that when organized labour dug in its heels, manufacturing companies never thought twice about shutting a factory and transferring production to another country.  Now, the largest sectors involve service industries and high tech companies which are very difficult to organize, especially among low paying jobs and where turnover is high.  Lifetime job security once offered by unions in the manufacturing sector no longer exists, leaving workers vulnerable to company pressures not to organize.  In some cases, as in high tech, companies offer enough benefits to make the need for unions a thing of the past.  Management-side lawyers argue convincingly that many employers have gotten better over the years at heeding workers’ concerns, making unions less necessary.  William Spriggs, the A.F.L.- C.I.O.’s chief economist, acknowledged that unions were doing poorly in manufacturing, retail and elsewhere in the private sector, which has been adding jobs even as union membership continued a slide that has lasted for decades.

The primary piece of federal legislation governing federal labour rights is the National Labor Relations Act which has been around since 1935.  It was explicitly introduced to encourage collective bargaining, but that the law had never been fully carried out in this regard. The principal federal agency established by the Act, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), has no power to impose monetary penalties against employers who openly obstruct union membership drives.  The NLRB’s enforcement remedies are few and weak, which means its ability to restrain anti-union employers from breaking the law is limited.

The situation in Canada is somewhat the same.  Since Statistics Canada began measuring unionization through household surveys, the overall unionization rate within Canada’s private sector (15.2% in 2014) has been declining for over 30 years.  This was partially offset by high public sector union density (71.3% in 2014).  The growth of the service sectors in both countries is not expected to significantly change labour markets in the near future.  It will be difficult to organize workers in companies such as Amazon and Walmart, and there is little that governments can do.  Regulatory bodies can simply ensure that the rules are being followed, but they cannot force workers to join unions.  While the Biden administration may be able to bring the National Labor Relations Act into the Twenty-First century, the fact is that economic and industrial changes will most likely determine future unionization rates.  Despite the fact that President Biden is a strong supporter of unions, there is only so much that he can do to reverse the existing decline in these rates.  And that’s not much!

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Apr 25

CEOs Continue to be Overpaid Despite Significant Layoffs in Several Sectors

by bcurry

A recent New York Times report notes that Chief Executive Officer (CEO) pay remains stratospheric, even at companies battered by pandemic.  For years now, I have been studying how CEO compensation has steadily been on a ridiculous climb whereby, according to the Economic Policy Institute, CEOs of big American companies now make on average 320 times as much as their typical worker.  The report notes that in 1989, that ratio was 61-1.  From 1978 to 2019, compensation grew 14% for typical workers.  During the same period it rose 1,167% for CEOs.  The same situation holds true in Canada where, for example, between 1995 and 2007 there was a 444% compensation increase for top Canadian CEOs.

Add it all up and it’s clear that executive pay is on the rise once again despite the millions of workers affected by layoffs due to the pandemic.  Executive compensation is again rising at a much higher rate than employee pay, inflation or even corporate performance.  The old justification that they deserve it based on performance doesn’t wash in many cases.  The Times article noted the following companies’ CEO compensation for last year.  Boeing’s CEO, David Calhoun, was rewarded with some $21.1 million in compensation despite Boeing having had a historically bad 2020.  Norwegian Cruise Line barely survived the year, but the pay of Frank Del Rio, its CEO, was doubled to $36.4 million.  Hilton’s CEO Chris Nassetta received compensation worth $55.9 million in 2020 despite nearly a quarter of the corporate staff members being laid off as hotels around the world sat empty and the company lost $720 million.  General Electric’s CEO, Larry Culp, received $73.2 million last year and could collect well over $100 million more, thanks to a recently updated pay plan.  GE is still reeling from years of mismanagement.

The above noted examples are just a few in a continuing saga of CEOs being outlandishly paid for simply being CEOs, despite companies having difficult times as a result of the pandemic.  Firms will argue that much of this ridiculous situation is a result of how the market has evolved over the years regarding competition for so-called top managers.  They pay lip service to the importance of supporting their workers, but still believe that their CEOs deserve more than 300 times the compensation of those very same workers.  In Japan, and throughout much of Asia for that matter, there’s a much more balanced approach.  In 2007, Japanese CEOs were making on average only 10 times to 15 times more than their base level employees.  When their companies don’t do well, Japanese CEOs insist on taking a comparable pay cut unlike most American and Canadian CEOs.

A sad part about this pandemic on the economic front is that it continues to contribute to the growing societal inequalities that have needlessly evolved over the several decades.  To deal with the economic impact of the pandemic and the deficits incurred by governments at all levels, there needs to be an increase in taxes on multi-millionaire CEOs and billionaires, most of whom have evidently benefited from soaring stock markets.  Failure to deal with increasing inequities will result in more societal pain and poverty.

Canada Corporate Welfare State Economy Economy US

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Apr 23

All of a Sudden, Climate Change is Back in the News

by bcurry

The Biden administration has just announced that it will unveil a more aggressive plan to cut U.S. green house gases (GHG) — probably around 50 percent by the end of the decade, compared with 2005 levels.  Other countries, including Canada, also announced their intentions to cut GHGs by 40 to 45 percent within the next decade.  In addition, despite diplomatic clashes, the U.S. and China vow to work together on climate change.  However, it is reported meanwhile that carbon dioxide levels spiked to a critical new record, halfway to doubling pre-industrial CO2 levels.  In addition, forecasts by Swiss Re estimate that the effects of climate change can be expected to shave 11 to 14 percent off global economic output by 2050 compared with growth levels without climate change, possibly by as much as $23 trillion.  Poorer countries are expected to suffer the most.  Swiss Re is one of the world’s largest providers of insurance to other insurance companies.  Needless-to-say, among insurance companies, the ultimate impact of climate change on their business is of growing concern.  During the past 40 years, the U.S. alone has experienced almost 300 weather and climate-related disasters that exceeded $1 billion in losses each.  Last year alone, there were 22 such billion-dollar disasters.

While it is great to see that the U.S. and Canada are upping their pledges to combat climate change through huge investments, one can only hope that it’s not too little or too late.  However, the very fact that climate change is back on the agenda in a serious way, despite their obvious recent concentration on the pandemic, is a good thing.  Numerous industry sectors, including the oil and gas industry, have come forward with plans to help curb GHGs.  Government support for green industries will help to promote credible proposals on hydrogen-based and carbon sequestration initiatives.  In recent months, there have been numerous accounts of the automotive sector’s initiatives to increase the number of electric vehicles in the coming years.  Finally, one is beginning to see a change in the thinking of business leaders, recognizing the inevitability of societal demands to tackle climate change in real terms.

Despite being an optimist, I cannot help but continue to be a little sceptical as to how quickly certain industry sectors will move to implement green technologies.  Like the pandemic, climate change requires a global approach to dealing with its impact.  We have seen how difficult it is to really develop international strategies to resolve the pandemic when it seems each and every country is focussing primarily on its own domestic situation.  Unlike the pandemic which hopefully will come under control in the coming year, climate change requires longer-term initiatives and isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.

Climate Change

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Apr 18

The Scourge of Gun Violence in America is Here to Stay

by bcurry

I recently read that during the first six years of President Obama’s administration, tragically over sixteen thousand children were shot and killed.  In Chicago alone, Obama’s home town, the number of shootings added up to more than one a day.  On April 15th, a gunman killed eight people at a FedEx facility in Indianapolis.  It is the latest in a harrowing string of mass shootings in the U.S.  Last month alone, eight people were fatally shot at massage businesses across the Atlanta area, and 10 died in gunfire at a supermarket in Boulder, Colorado.  President Biden, who has had the flag lowered to half mast three times in his first hundred days in office, has called the situation a “national embarrassment”.  I would add that it is an embarrassment that will not go away for a long time, if ever.

Just take 2020’s final statistics for gun violence.  Gun violence killed nearly 20,000 Americans, according to data from the Gun Violence Archive, more than any other year in at least two decades.  An additional 24,000 people died by suicide with a gun.  Gunshot injuries also rose dramatically, to nearly 40,000, over 8,000 more than in 2017.   According to Archive data, nearly 300 children were shot and killed in 2020, a 50% increase over the previous year.  More than 5,100 kids and teens 17 and younger were killed or injured last year — over 1,000 more than any other year since 2014.  However, these are simply statistics.  Unfortunately, each and every one represents a human being who was or is someone’s father, mother, son, daughter, etc., etc.

The U.S. is the only country where there are more guns than people.  Recent surveys find that about 40% of adult Americans own a gun or live with someone who does.  According to 2018 estimates from the Switzerland-based Small Arms Survey, American civilians own 393 million guns, ranking the U.S. number one in firearms per capita.  We’re not just talking about single-shot weapons, but also automatic and semi-automatic handguns and military-style rifles capable of horrendously killing many people in a very short time.   In 2020, people purchased about 23 million guns, a 64% increase over 2019 sales.  Surveys continue to find that a majority of gun owners believe they are safer with a gun in their homes.  And many gun rights activists, supported by a long-standing narrative from the National Rifle Association (NRA), continue to argue that “a good guy with a gun” can save people from gun violence.  But numerous studies have found that self-defensive gun use to prevent or combat violence is rare.  For example, a 2015 Harvard study found that people defended themselves with a gun in less than 1% of 14,000 crimes from 2007 to 2011.

How often have we heard the NRA declare that “guns don’t kill people, people kill people.”  However, it would seem to most rational persons that the ready and widespread availability of guns greatly contributes to these tragedies.  There is no way in getting around the evidence!  The easy access to guns, even by persons with mental health conditions or with a history of violence, contributes to the above outcomes.  Ratified in 1791, the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution has been deemed by American courts to protect the right to keep and bear arms.  Aimed to facilitate the formation of militias to defend a young country at the time, this antiquated and perverse notion continues to plague the country.  Recent events and the unquestionable statistics prove it.  Sadly, despite all the prayers, the scourge of gun violence in America is here to stay.

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Apr 15

U.S. Should Take Lead In Global COVID Vaccination For Vulnerable Countries

by bcurry

Having just read a recent report by the American Centre for Strategic and International Affairs, it became clearly evident that the U.S. helping to secure the future of lower- and middle-income countries is simply the right thing to do, on humanitarian, economic, and security grounds.  This means taking a clear lead on helping to provide supplies of COVID vaccines to vulnerable poorer countries in Africa and the Americas.  The facts are that the U.S. has already purchased 1.3 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines from six companies, enough to vaccinate 650 million people — nearly twice the U.S. population.  Meanwhile, recent reports say 300 million vaccine doses could be in the U.S. by July of this year, sparking hoarding worries.

The Biden administration is apparently leaning toward keeping the doses it has ordered, and then at some point directing the excess to other nations in either bilateral deals or giving it to Covax.  Covax is an international nonprofit organization backed by the World Health Organization (WHO) that is trying to coordinate equitable distribution of vaccine among vulnerable countries.  The Biden administration has already donated $3.5 billion for the Global Fund in support of the international effort.  The recent passed American Rescue Plan also included a further $11 billion to support the global Covid-19 response, $3 billion for U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), $650 million for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) global Covid-19 response, and $300 million for the Center for Epidemic Preparedness and Innovation (CEPI).  An excellent start to help combat the global pandemic.

However, the Centre for Strategic and International Affairs strongly suggests that the U.S. bring considerable leverage to any global strategy on vaccines.  It is after all the biggest vaccine market and the largest investor in vaccines, with the deepest impact on research and development of new products.  In addition, the Centre’s report suggests that the U.S. should work with multilateral efforts to create fiscal space in lower- and middle-income countries to invest in their health infrastructure, which will be essential for responding to the current crisis as well as making investments in future pandemic preparedness.  It’s one thing to supply vaccines, it’s another to actually deliver and immunize a population affected by difficult regional transportation and few local health care capacities.  These multilateral investments must continue into the future if vulnerable countries are to control future outbreaks and protect the health of their citizens.

We have already seen the foreign policy moves by China and Russia to supply vaccines strategically to vulnerable countries as an additional means of exerting their political and economic influence in the Americas, Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Africa.  Western countries, led by the U.S., cannot afford to ignore such vaccine supply initiatives underway in these strategic regions.  Furthermore, millions of lives are at stake given the current increasing spread of COVID variants in these regions.  The global response to this pandemic must be met through an international approach to be successful.  Who else is in a better position to lead this response than the United States?

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Apr 11

Hesitancy About Getting COVID Vaccine Remains A Major Concern

by bcurry

In both the U.S. and Canada there is a hesitancy among a certain portion of the population about getting the COVID vaccine, despite the recent surge in vaccine supplies in recent weeks.  The concern is often due to various forms of vaccine scepticism, sometimes attributed to peoples’ continuing distrust of government or mistrust of the health care system.  In the U.S., this mistrust is particularly evident among African Americans, notably where the health care system has frequently let them down in the past.  Among a significant number of white Republican supporters, including college-educated Republican women under age 49, much of the hesitancy can be attributed to the misinformation that flourishes on social media and the mixed messaging from Republican governors that leave people confused.  A number of heavily Republican states are currently finding themselves with surpluses of vaccine doses, including Oklahoma, Ohio, Georgia, Mississippi, Tennessee, Arkansas and Alabama. 

Part of the problem is that several of these states have eased their restrictions thereby sending a message opposite to a narrative that promotes the urgency of vaccinations.  With the rise in cases involving so-called variants, such as the U.K. variant which is believed to be about 60 percent more contagious and 67 percent deadlier than the original version of the virus, the U.S. and Canada must take the matter of vaccine scepticism seriously.  Both countries have seen a recent surge in outbreaks despite the arrival of vaccines.  The hesitancy has national implications.  As alluded to on several occasions, experts suggest that between 70 percent to 90 percent of all Americans and Canadians must be vaccinated for a country to reach herd immunity, the point at which the virus can no longer spread through the population.

Fortunately, the issue of vaccine hesitancy may be less of a concern in Canada.  A survey of Canadians in March by the Angus Reid Institute noted that the number of respondents who said they would not get the vaccine at all remained relatively steady at about 12 percent.  Since last fall, Canadians’ hesitancy about COVID-19 vaccine appears to have been dropping, with a good majority (over 80 percent) stating that they would get the vaccine as soon as possible.  Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for many Americans.  For example, according to several recent surveys, nearly half of all Republican men and 40 percent of Republicans overall have said they do not plan to get vaccinated.  This attitude is further reflected in their continuing hesitancy to wear facial masks and to socially distance, something the Trump administration encouraged at the pandemic’s outset.

Since it appears that there are people who mistrust politicians on the matter of COVID vaccination, some public health experts suggest that what’s needed are well-crafted messages delivered by doctors, religious leaders and other figures who are trusted in a particular community.  Unless vaccine hesitancy is reduced significantly, there is a real danger of vaccines sitting on shelves somewhere, and possibly passing their best before dates.  In the fight against the spread of the variants, neither the U.S. nor Canada can afford to have this happen!

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Apr 5

Will Religious Organizations Help Prolong The Pandemic?

by bcurry

Once again, we are witnessing a struggle between science and religious beliefs.  This time it has become even more political as a result of states and provinces continuing restrictions on gatherings and rolling out COVID-19 vaccines.  Some churches in both the U.S. and Canada have refused to comply with government restrictions on the size of gatherings, arguing it goes against freedom of religion rights.  However, the courts have generally ruled that governments have a right to implement such restrictions as a matter of public safety, especially given the serious nature of the pandemic.  Then there are the arguments by some churches against being vaccinated, again on religious grounds.  This has major implications for ending the global pandemic and eventually establishing what is referred to as “herd immunity”.

In the U.S. alone there are about 41 million white evangelical adults.  According to a recent survey by the Pew Research Center in February, about 45 percent said that they would not get vaccinated against COVID-19, making them among the least likely demographic groups to do so.  In comparison, 22 percent of Catholics in America say they will not get the vaccine, despite the fact that the Vatican has concluded the vaccines are “morally acceptable” and has emphasized the immediate danger posed by the virus.  A number of leaders of white evangelical congregations have been forced out of their churches after promoting health and vaccination guidelines.  Much of the opposition is rooted in a mix of religious faith and a long-standing wariness of mainstream science.  Opposition is also being fuelled by a broader cultural distrust of institutions and gravitation to online conspiracy theories, making such beliefs governed increasingly by political considerations.  There is one clear unavoidable fact that the rates of COVID-19 death have been about twice as high for Black, Hispanic, and Native Americans/Canadians as for white Americans and Canadians.  For this reason, despite over half a million COVID deaths in the U.S., perhaps these white evangelicals don’t believe they are at risk.

What is making the situation worst is the fact that religious leaders continue to mistrust scientific leaders by pointing to sources of misinformation on both sides.  In the case of evangelicals, it is only other evangelicals who can really provide informed guidance based on the facts surrounding this pandemic and the steps needed to end it.  Some leaders have already attempted to try to sway their followers towards the need for vaccination and to continue to take precautions in the short-term at least.  However, as one expert notes, distrust of scientists has become part of cultural identity, of what it means to be white and evangelical in America and Canada.

As both countries go through another wave of coronavirus involving more deadly variants, both political and religious leaders are going to have to convince an outstanding part of the populations that is against being vaccinated on religious and political grounds.  Churches also have a major role to play in poorer more vulnerable countries where there are significant evangelical populations.  Simply put, trusting in God and ignoring the real consequences of this disease isn’t going to help resolve the problem of millions of related deaths occurring around the world.  Whatever our beliefs, we owe it to our fellow humanity to help put an end to this scourge once and for all.  Opposition to the vaccines and restrictions, whether religious or otherwise, has to be overcome sooner rather than later. 

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Apr 1

Current Restrictions on Americans Entering Canada Tough to Take

by bcurry

Canada and the U.S. have the longest land border in the world, one which is normally open for Canadians and Americans to easily cross.  This all changed with the advent of COVID-19 last spring.  Except for essential trade items, land border restrictions for travel between Canada and the U.S. came into effect a year ago and remain in effect through April 21, 2021.  Given the current increase in coronavirus cases in both countries, the restrictions most likely will be extended.  Needless-to-say, this has had a horrific impact on tourism in both countries.

On the other hand, air travel between both countries does allow for the entry of Americans and Canadians into Canada and vice versa but with numerous restrictions.  All airline passengers aged two years and older must provide a negative COVID-19 viral test taken within three calendar days of travel.  Travelers entering Canada must present a credible 14-day quarantine plan.  Failure to provide a negative COVID-19 viral test will require airline passengers to take a COVID-19 molecular test upon their arrival in Canada.  Passengers then must stay in an approved hotel for three nights awaiting the results of the viral test.  Those who test positive are required to finish their 14-day quarantine in a Canadian government-designated facility.  All of this at the cost of the travelers, which can add up to thousands of dollars.

Failure to comply with the current Canadian border restrictions is a serious matter.  Compliance failure is considered an offence under the Quarantine Act and could lead to up to $750,000 in fines, and/or imprisonment of up to 6 months.  Something not to be sneezed at!  One can see that, unless someone is involved in essential work and is required to travel, most average Americans will avoid travelling to Canada by air or by land.  Indeed, except for essential workers such as truckers hauling goods across the border, most Americans are being turned away at the border crossings.  This is particularly tough on families where family members are located in both countries.  Allowing for entry because of humanitarian reasons is determined based on each individual case and can take time to adjudicate.  Good luck!

Fortunately, in their usual spirit of cooperation both countries have agreed to each other’s restrictions.  However, this does not make it any easier and numerous complaints have surfaced about the handling of situations involving both Canadians and Americans.  In the meantime, until this pandemic is truly under control, one can only predict that such restrictions will remain in effect for travel between the two countries in the coming months.  Both governments simply prefer that we don’t travel — period.

Canada Coronavirus COVID-19 Immigration Policies U.S. Canada Border US

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