Doesnt the new labor legislation in Russia turn back the clock!
In the US and Canada it would seem that temporary workers are used to
keep full time workers from working overtime at a higher wage.
Cheers, Ken Hanly
----- Original Message -----
From: Tom Walker <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
There happens to be a reason why I write and study so much about working
time. The reason is not that I am a one-trick pony. The reason is that
historically, reductions in working time -- which, by the way, almost
invariably include wage gains as a component -- have proven to be more
defensible than strictly monetary wage gains. Karl Marx noticed this. The
founders of the American Federation of Labor noticed it. The 1902 report of
the Industrial Commission appointed by the U.S. Congress noticed it. The
early 20th century National Association of Manufacturers USA noticed and
abhorred it.
Organized labour in the U.S. seems to have forgotten it and has been in
decline for several decades. Employers' organizations, right-wing think
tanks, the financial press and mainstream economists seem to have remembered
it all too well and are quick to respond with ridicule and hostility to
comprehensive proposals to restrict and/or redistribute working time.
Coincidentally (or not), neo-liberalism has been in ascendency for several
decades. Leftists seem to take the issue for granted, as if it is all too
obvious a good thing to be worth investing much effort in. Maybe leftists
secretly prefer the drama of struggling against insurmountable odds to
defend indefensible gains.
