What to do about the new wave of layoffs?

The great doom and gloom is just stupid management

The Straight Goods Cyber Forum with Larry Solway

Commentary:

  The omnipotent Buzz could do nothing about the layoffs. He looked chagrined of course, knowing that Air Canada (thanks a lot Bob Milton) Ste. Therese (thanks to GM as well) and Bombardier (what's Beaudoin supposed to do?) are all CAW bailiwicks. All he could do is mumble about imports hurting the Canadian industry. Pretty weak stuff.
  If I were Buzz, which thank heaven for both of us I am not, I would have made a concrete proposal to institute a government-sponsored program of work sharing.
  It goes like this:
  Given that very few companies choose to "stockpile" workers so that when the economy comes back they won't be caught short, there is another way to keep them, working.
  Buzz should be demanding more. Instead of looking crestfallen, he should have demanded than the government, instead of spending billions in Employment Insurance (don't you love that euphemism for being out of work?) were to give those funds directly to the work-sharing people to top up what they lose by reduced hours. It's the best solution I can think of. It would keep people working. It would sustain their incomes. It would save government money. It would restore consumer confidence.
  I won't be happy if our government caves in and pays out money to keep Air Canada flying. Air Canada is not as important as the thousands of their employees who will be applying for Employment Insurance. Propping up the airline would be a disaster, since subsidies never guarantee that a company will stay at a high employment level or even stay in the country. The money spent on keeping GM in Quebec may have had some effect, but for god's sake, they're leaving. It's what enterprise is all about.
  In Canada, (there is no hope in the totally marketplace-obsessed America) where government should work for people not just for industry, we can do it.
  Go ahead Ottawa. Spend the money where it counts, Spend money to keep self-respecting working folks (and hi tech whizzes) earning a living, paying their mortgages, and paying taxes.
  And before we leave it ­ think what job security does for consumerism ­ the engine of prosperity.

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Posted: October 01, 2001

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