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I wonder if the unions of america’s history with organized crime is to blame for its inability to be functional like german unions.
by alexnewman 3y ago
I wonder if the unions of america’s history with organized crime is to blame for its inability to be functional like german unions.
- Certhas 3y agoI think it's also related to the fact that they operate in an incredibly hostile environment. A broad general union can not thrive, so the only ones that remain are those special interest unions that wield enormous power to extract rents by representing specialists/niches. In Germany you also have democratic elements in all firms above a certain size (workers councils, Betriebsrat). The whole cultural and legal framework is just different. Also compared to France for example.
- alexnewman 3y agoThanks for the thoughtful reply. Can you speak more to the incredibly hostile environment? What do you mean by this?
- jqpabc123 3y agoinability to be functional like german unions The difference starts at the top --- in most german companies management doesn't typically get 40 percent pay raises while workers get 2 percent. Workers would rightfully consider this to be a crime against them. So maybe the real reason American unions can't function like german unions is because American management acts like organized crime.