The recent headlines on the UAW leadership being charged with corruption made me think of Abraham Lincoln. He said “nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.” Unions are an effective and important tool that economic journeymen and women can use to cooperate towards achieving a better life. During the last 30 years when workers wages have stagnated and corporate profits soared, the economists and the legislators were working on dismantling the “power” that Unions had to negotiate on their members behalf. A narrative was told that said that dues lined the pockets of corrupt leaders, that what you paid into the system exceeded what you got out, and that you were better off to go it alone as a free agent. The funny thing is in our economic ecosystem you do not get paid what you are worth, but what you have the power to negotiate. In our economic ecosystem we have become happy with a system that is O.K. with Goliath always coming out ahead of David. In fact, if you read articles on the subject you often see citizens saying my employer does not provide those benefits, so why should yours. We have been conditioned to accept a race to the bottom in our ecosystem because we often time choose to compete against one another, instead of cooperating with the goal of elevating everyone’s game.
The definition of a Labor Union is “an organization of workers formed for the purpose of advancing its members interest in respect to wages, benefits, and working conditions”. Sounds like a pretty good way to increase your leverage and bargaining position in negotiations. However for this tool to be used effectively we need to make sure that its leaders are ethical. An ethical leader is one who “demonstrates conduct for the common good that is acceptable and appropriate in every area of life.” To do this a leader (1) Acts as the example, (2) Champions the importance of ethics, and (3) Communicates trust, fairness, integrity, openness, compassion, and respect. Unions are good, but unethical leaders are bad. The trick is not to let the bad apples topple the apple cart, because that is exactly what the architects of our ecosystems vacuum want you to do. Those that seek to retain power want us to ruthlessly compete against one another; not cooperate together in one another’s common interest.
In 1858, Lincoln had a debate with Stephen Douglas in the race for U.S. Senate. In that debate Lincoln said “In this age, and this country, public sentiment is everything. With it, nothing can fail; against it, nothing can succeed. Whoever moulds public sentiment, goes deeper than he who enacts statutes, or pronounces judicial decisions.” The architects of that vacuum in our ecosystem have almost successfully convinced workers that competition is better than cooperation, that being a free agent is better than being a team player. When we cooperate we make a choice to harness our power and challenge the existing power structure to up their game; by cooperating we compete against those holding on tight to the reigns of power for a better seat at the negotiating table, and for a more equitable form of capitalism. Humanity is hard wired for altruism, so let’s tap into that wealth of power.
Finally, I leave you with a quote to ponder as you examine our ecosystem: “There are seven things that will destroy us: Wealth without work; Pleasure without conscience; Knowledge without character; Religion without sacrifice; Politics without principle; Science without humanity; Business without ethics” – Mahatmar Gandhi
Each of us, has the opportunity, to help one another write a new story, to change the script, to narrate a different outcome, where we cooperate so we can compete against those who exemplify the destructive actions behind Gandhi’s words. What story do you want to tell?
Economic Journeyman 