my unqualified, common-sense opinions regarding the economy...

[rivendellrose]

You know what I'd like to see in a stimulus package?

A clause whereby, for every 100 jobs that a company cuts, the CEO and all of upper management must immediately receive a significant pay cut. This would not only encourage them to cut costs without cutting people, but would achieve the sort of responsibility that I wish management and CEOs would take in their company's wellbeing - concern for their employees. Real concern. Maybe it's my semi-idealized-feudal-system attitude toward the way hierarchy ought to be arranged, but I've always felt that a company ought to be required to cut the higher employees wages before cutting lower employees out of work completely.

Unlikely in the extreme, I realize, but that's what I think would be fair. If you're the one making the decisions, you get the fall if the decisions are wrong. Not the poor sods who are just your foot-soldiers.

Something else I'd like: Measures to prevent states from cutting funding for schools and higher institutions of learning (can you say "shooting yourself in the foot?" Honestly, I can think of nothing stupider in an economic crisis than cutting spending on the future). And I'm not just saying this because my alma mater (and former employer) is going to have to cut 600-800 jobs and cut back on enrollment this fall, if the state budget goes through as it is now. :P

Comments

[darthparadox.livejournal.com]

I'd like to see a law restricting executive pay (and benefits) to some multiplier of the company's median pay. Stories like this infuriate me, especially when coupled with the fact that median real wages (i.e. adjusted for inflation) have been stagnant for a decade or so. All the economic "growth" that happened during the first half of the decade went directly into the pockets of the wealthy. And I put it in quotes because the growth was based on debt and credit. The past several years have constituted one of the largest transfers of wealth to the upper class ever seen.

[pat-t.livejournal.com]

What you are saying is responsible and sensible. Which is why we'll probably never see it. It just burns my ass when I see companies cutting jobs and then paying their execs *huge* bonuses. And I've privately wondered how many companies are using the economic crises to screw over employees (without worry of legal retribution) by cutting their workforce, freezing wages and raises, or asking their employees to give up benefits or vacation time.

[iamlovely.livejournal.com]

I'm of the same opinion when it comes to companies taking care of their employees. The restaurant I'm working in just opened...probably the worst economic time to open a restaurant. I'm the head waitress/unofficial assistant manager. It's very small, so I'm the only waitress Tuesday-Friday. And on Saturday it was me and one other person...but we were swamped with dishes and unable to reset tables because we were so busy. So in order to convince my boss she can afford a third server I cut my income down considerably and now the three of us make the same and split tips equally, even though only two of us work with customers. It has some communist undertones, but we're just trying to do what we can to get the restaurant to do well.

I really wish the decision makers in our county were as rational as you are when it comes to our economic situation.