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June 13th, 2008
Corporate America Gets Religion on Economic Insecurity
Word that business leaders are backing a better safety net for U.S. workers displaced by trade is good—if belated—news.
For several years now, it has been clear that the global economy can have frightening effects not only on manufacturing workers but also the services workers who make up the bulk of American jobs these days.
In a study published by the Institute for International Economics in 2005, researchers found that U.S. workers in services industries that can be traded internationally, such as data processing, lose their jobs at a higher rate than workers overall do, and that job loss for them is costly. On average, the study found, full-time workers in tradable services fields who are displaced and then return to full-time work suffer a 21 percent drop in earnings.
Yes, there are many benefits to trade—including lower prices for U.S. consumers and opportunities for workers in less-developed nations. But America often turns a cold shoulder to those of its workers left behind by the global economy. Most glaringly, the U.S. provides skimpy unemployment benefits compared with other developed nations.
There is a program that bolsters the safety net for workers dislocated by trade—providing such benefits as income support, relocation allowances, training and a health coverage tax credit. But the Trade Adjustment Assistance program is of limited help today, because it concentrates on manufacturing industries.
Paltry aid to many of globalization’s “losers” isn’t just callous, it’s counterproductive. Generous benefits and aggressive retraining programs can shore up consumer confidence, stimulate a slumping economy and ramp up workforce skills.
Meanwhile, unemployment jumped dramatically last month, and Americans are reporting significant pocketbook pain. In a recent USA Today/Gallup poll, 55 percent of Americans surveyed said their families are worse off financially than they were a year ago—the highest number since Gallup first asked the question in 1976. And with a trade deficit that has topped $700 billion for the last three years, support for trade has dwindled among Americans.
We wrote about the need for business leaders to get off the sidelines in the debate over economic insecurity back in 2006.
The business community took a big step in that direction this week with the launch of a group called the Trade and American Competitiveness Coalition. The group, made up of 26 businesses and trade associations, isn’t endorsing specific legislation, according to my colleague Mark Schoeff Jr. But it wants to see Trade Adjustment Assistance extended to workers in the service sector. It seems the formation of the coalition could help break a logjam over how to renew TAA.
It’s not clear why corporate leaders in the coalition have taken up the cause of displaced workers just now—it may be more out of concern that support for trade deals is faltering than out of genuine empathy for average Americans.
But the exact motivations may not matter. And even if the business community was slow to embrace the issue, it can still do some serious good. Better late than never.
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Want to know how we can solve all the country’s financial problems? Want to know how to save social security, restore the value of the dollar and help fund health care for all? The answer is to start taxing the churches. They should not be able to operate as tax-free enterprises any more. It’s time they help shoulder some of the financial burden we now find ourselves in. Most all own land and buildings which requires police and fire protection.
Now, there is a church on every corner in Nashville and in our country. They all operate virtually tax free. This is crazy. I don’t think they should be taxed as a full business but at least pay 25% of that a business would pay. The church is the first to say and I agree that this country was found on Godly principles. I think most of the financial mess we’re in is a result of 911. Whether that is the case or not, we have run out of places to generate revenue. Printing more money is not the answer for that only devalue the dollar even more.
Does the church not appreciate what our troops have done since 911. The majority of the mess we’re in is due to the war in Iraq. Most of the deficit before the economic collapse was due to the war. And if we had not had that high of a deficit when Wall Street went down; we’d had a smoother and quicker recovery. The war, whether you agree with it or not, was in response to 911. Some say a holy war; especially to those who pulled it off. Does the church not feel indebted to the military. Why wouldn’t the church agree to such a measure. Does the church enjoy being able to call the fireman if there is a fire. Does the church not enjoy being able to call the policeman if there is a problem? Well these things cost money. Not to mention the enormous amount of land the church owns. This is unfair to all land owners across.
The church should agree to a ten years taxation period with a guaranteed non-tax period of two years subsequent to that.
It’s time the churches put their money where their mouth is. Email your congressman to help get this idea moving. The revenue generated will more than pay our national debt and save social security.
Now some of you will say that making churches no longer non-profit entities would violate the constitutional mandate of separation of church and state. It would not. The separation of church and state has to do with the constitutional ban on the federal government legislating or making laws telling you who you can worship, when you can worship and how you can worship, etc. It has nothing to do with the classification of churches as non-profit organizations. And it certainly has nothing to do with them paying or not paying taxes. (See federalist papers along w/ Thomas Jefferson’s notes).
Just so you know I am a christian and have no problem w/ my church paying taxes. Of course the church will hate the idea.
Here is the link to find your congressman.
http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
Please forward this to all your friends. It should be an interesting debate.
Posted by: David Norrell | November 29th, 2008 at 12:26 am