Archived: Mar 03, 2008

> Editorial

Myth of progress

Unions counter oppression

By Nathan Johnson

The push to join the United Steelworkers Union is the largest organizing effort in Milwaukee’s recent history.

Profit isn’t just a “motive” under capitalism; it’s the rule which determines investment and production. Producing for the sake of profit before people can only lead to exploitation.

By definition profit is, after all, the difference between the value workers create and the wages they receive. This structural exploitation is the basis for the class struggle and for fighting the good cause of the labor movement.

For middle class people with a relatively high standard of living, it’s easy to believe that the savage working conditions of 19th century capitalism and the brutality of imperialism are things of the past, at least in America. The myth is that capitalism is automatically making life better for the working class as the years go by, and that there is no better alternative.

However, a 10 minute drive west of campus will provide a reality check. Milwaukee’s inner city is in a permanent state of great depression, with the rate of unemployment an inexcusable 50 percent for black men.

If anyone thinks that the United States with its service economy is somehow more civil than the capitalism of the 19th century, consider that the US standard of living is made possible at the expense of over 3 billion people living in poverty worldwide.

If anyone thinks that capitalism is the best economic system for America, consider that the U.S. economic rate of growth is a lowly 2.2 percent, ranking 181 among the nations of the world. Furthermore, the European Union has 3.0 percent growth and Japan with its state-capitalism has 2.0 percent growth, proving Karl Marx right when he wrote “The monopoly of capital becomes a fetter upon the mode of production.”

Capitalists hire labor-power and workers receive a wage. Seems fair, right? Wrong. Wage laborers living paycheck to paycheck have to sell their labor power in order to live, even if the labor market is unfavorable to them; capitalists do not. Therefore it is never an even deal.

Even though there are a greater number of workers, capitalists are the economically dominant class in our society, since they own the means of production. Workers depend with their lives on being able to sell their labor-power to access the means of production, and employment is by no means a given considering the “every man for himself” attitude of the capitalist mode of production.

In response to these very real and longstanding threats, the working class has fought back and stood up for itself by unionizing. Milwaukee workers at Capital Returns, a company which recycles pharmaceuticals, are seeking to unionize in order to improve unsafe working conditions, collectively bargain for a higher wage, and otherwise have greater control over their lives and work.

The push to join the United Steelworkers Union is the largest organizing effort in Milwaukee’s recent history. Some of the outrages inciting the workers to unionize include: an average wage of $9; having to stand for hours on the job after chairs were removed without explanation; being searched prior to using the restroom or leaving the premises; two women having miscarriages which may be related to hazardous handling of unknown drugs; poor ventilation and high rates of asthma attacks; not being allowed to leave the building while fires were witnessed; not informing parents when their child was being hospitalized until the end of their shift; and lacking paid sick days and a disability plan.

In response to unionizing efforts Capital Returns hired union busters, held meetings where workers were told one-sided negative claims about unions, started surveillance of pro-union workers and conducted “random” searches on them, threatened workers that they’ll be run over in the parking lot and many other efforts to dispel labor solidarity.

I went to a pro-union demonstration at the gates of Capital Returns on Feb. 20 during the shift change. Union activists were handing out information to workers as they were coming or going while an intimidating supervisor was motioning for workers to not stop and accept the flyers. Workers who take a shuttle bus home were driven out the back way so that they wouldn’t have a chance to see the demonstrators supporting their pending unionization.

Capital Returns shows that capitalist greed, selfishness and brutality are not things of the past but persist to this day, even in America.

Workers can combat capitalist exploitation by social activism and unionizing. Come and support the Capital Returns workers at the next pro-union demonstration March 5 at 3:15 p.m.. Capital Returns is located on 6101 N 64th St. Workers will vote on unionizing March 6.

> Comments

Johanan Raatz on Mar 03, 2008 at 10:13 AM:

"Profit isn’t just a “motive” under capitalism; it’s the rule which determines investment and production. Producing for the sake of profit before people can only lead to exploitation."

But the profit motive is the what powers any economy. Making stuff out of necessity is done for the same motive for making stuff for luxury. People have different desires for things but it boils down to the same basic impulse which is the profit motive.

Economics can not meaningfully be defined without things like property, the law of value, or the profit motive. Therefore, any economic system that claims to do without them is a contradiction in terms.

I mean what it mean to have economics if their isn't any property to own and therefore be able to buy or sell. This isn't just a practical problem it's a theoretically one.

"lowly 2.2 percent, ranking 181 among the nations of the world. Furthermore, the European Union has 3.0 percent growth and Japan with its state-capitalism has 2.0 percent growth,"

But if you look at how it works out in the E.U. many of them still don't have cars. Also the unemployment rates in America and Japan are usually far lower than those in the E.U.

"Capitalists hire labor-power and workers receive a wage. Seems fair, right? Wrong."

Well then they're isn't any such thing as a fair economic model. Because "fairness" is defined in terms of contracts. If no contract is fair then there simply isn't any such thing as fairness. Without a contract why not just steal from your neighbor? I mean if there isn't any rules defining how valuable his stuff is what's wrong with stealing something that has no value?

If you get rid of the rules (the contracts) then you can't possibly call the system fair. Getting rid of the contracts would be like a game where everyone is breaking the rules.

"Wage laborers living paycheck to paycheck have to sell their labor power in order to live, even if the labor market is unfavorable to them; capitalists do not. Therefore it is never an even deal."

Economics is like a game. Everyone plays by the same rules and are dealt their cards, and plays to win. Just because not everyone wins doesn't make the game unfair. Everyone is also dealt different cards, but that is also part of the game and doesn't make it any less fair. However, once you break the rules to allow for equality of outcome then the system is by definition unfair as you are breaking the rules that define fairness. Now it is fair to give (charity) by the rules of the game, but if you take without permission that is breaking the rules.

"and employment is by no means a given considering the “every man for himself” attitude of the capitalist mode of production."

Well that is what I like about the state-capitalism model. It isn't every man for himself it's every team for itself. I think that would at least in part solve the inner-city poverty problem. This competition motive be it individualistic(conventional capitalism) or communitarian(state-capitalism) is the appropriate motive in economics. Since fairness is by definition parameterized in terms of the contract competition is therefore not unfair but rather the whole point of economics.