The attitude organized labor faces in America.

[polymath22]

An article, entitled "GM faces barrage of strike threats from UAW locals, www.detnews.com" was posted on reddit.com

In what could be described a insanity, a redditor made this comment followed later by this comment. I don't think it's insanity. I have another theory that I will elaborate on later.

To summarize the thread ( and give my own spin ) the comments discussed how unions are strangling American business, that American workers are lazy ( in spite of being some of the most productive on the planet ), and that American workers deserve to be displaced by workers who will work for the lowest possible wage.

The theory is that these lower paid workers will somehow cause the prices of things to fall. One redditor suggests that electronics prices have fallen. I would guess that this has more to do with Moore's Law than with cheap labor. The prices of most things have gone up. Either that or that federal reserve note they pay you with is somehow even more worthless today than it was yesterday, depending on your perspective.

I asked about professional athletes compensation in particular, because I think once you understand why athletes get paid what they do, then you understand why union workers should get paid well, too.

Q: Why do professional athletes get paid so much?
A: They deserve it.

There is a very long line of wanna-be professional athletes, but only the very top producers make it to the big leagues. We sense that the system is fair, and rewards those who pay the price to get where they are.

But why do they have to make so much money? A Rod will make $28 million this year. Couldn't the team just hire other athletes who would play the game for a fraction of that salary? The game would still be played. Fans would pay less for tickets. Advertisers would get cheaper rates. Everyone would be happy, except those overpaid, greedy Prima Donnas who just got replaced.

The answer is found when we follow the money. A stadium has only so many seats available. If there are more fans than seats available, then some people will not get seats. Who gets the tickets?

Two methods of deciding are "wait" and "price". They could sell really cheap tickets, hoping to fill the stands, and make people "wait" in line for 3 days to get them, or they could have a higher ticket price, which would make some fans reconsider and spend their entertainment money elsewhere.

Likewise with advertising. There is only so much ad space available during a game. Those who pay the price get the space. Others spend their advertising money elsewhere.

Whichever method employed to match supply and demand will include the exchange of money. So who gets it? The players labor, the coach management, or the owners capitalists?

That all deserve a slice of the pie is not in dispute. The question is how big each role-players slice should be.

$28 million a year seems like a lot of money, but recently this fan was able to see the game in "the house that babe built", for a measly $5. Even if they replaced A Rod with a cheap knock-off, it's hard to imagine seat prices getting any lower. Fans wouldn't pay less, the owners would take more. This consumer didn't spend money to see George Steinbrenner capitalists. I went to see A Rod labor.

One redditors comment explains that the reason some laborers like A Rod get paid $28 million/year is because it is assumed they produce something of value. Another comment assumes that other laborers could not possibly be worth $80K when others will fill those slots for $20K.

In spite of the fact that both athletes and union workers play the same role in an organization, one group of is paid 350 times the other group. With contempt we call the lesser paid group "greedy", "lazy", "overpaid", "dead beats" who should be replaced, yet we think that the higher paid group deserves every penny they earn?

Do I care that A Rod makes so much money? Not at all. He paid the price to get where he is, and with $5 seats, this fan can't really complain about price.

Do I think that union members make too much money? Not at all. These jobs, like playing sports, entail much more than is readily evident from the stands. Even waxing floors takes more skill than most people realize.

So why do people hold thoughts so self- conflicting that it suggests insanity? The answer, I believe, is that most people are getting cheated, and at some level they know it. If they get cheated too badly, they may choose not to play the "rat race" game anymore, and we would call them "lazy bums", as if any of us would continue to play a fixed game.

Others may continue to participate in the rat race, yet do what seems to be completely illogical...the cheated worker gives their paltry little reward to the other worker who already gets rewarded so handsomely, through the window at the box office.

Where would I get such a outlandish idea? From this study on how monkeys react when they get cheated.

Another thing to consider is the training of human resources. What skills does the labor pool need? Our ancestors ponied up tax money to provide everyone with a "free" public education, knowing that future workers would needs skills like reading, writing, and math. Our parents forfeited their own higher standard of living in order to increase our skill set. To discount the value of an American worker is to ignore the fact that a worker who can read or add is more valuable than one who cannot.

As some work was returning to America from a failed attempt at outsourcing to Mexico, it was said, "Gee, you just assume that everyone knows how to add 2+2 to get 4."

We should not discount the value of the gifts our ancestors have bestowed upon us. We should not discount the value of the investment made in us as workers. We should not discount the value of our neighbors work, even if we think they may get paid too well for waxing floors or playing ball. We definitely shouldn't export good jobs simply because others will allow themselves to be exploited by accepting a smaller slice of the pie.

We should not discount the work we have all put in to get us where we are in the world. Any person who hones their craft to the career level must "practice" full time. Musicians, athletes, lawyers, doctors all "practice, practice, practice." They make it look easy, but don't be fooled.

A rising tide raises all boats. As we help our neighbors prosper, we help ourselves as well.

For more background, consider reading Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations