Wednesday, March 28, 2007

Why We Need Unions

The following is excerpted from a Blomberg.com story

By Mark Clothier

March 28 (Bloomberg) -- Circuit City Stores Inc., the second-largest U.S. electronics retailer after Best Buy Co., fired 3,400 of its highest-paid hourly workers and will hire replacements willing to work for less.

The company said its eliminating jobs that paid ``well above'' market rates. Those who were fired can apply for the lower pay, company spokesman Bill Cimino said today. He declined to give the wages of the fired workers or the new hires.

The job cuts are ``one of the most brazen examples of corporate America run amuck,'' said Greg Tarpinian, executive director of Change to Win, which represents seven unions and about 6 million workers. ``It's workers as disposable commodities, put in and put out based on whatever happens to the stock price.''

Chief Executive Officer Philip Schoonover was paid $8.52 million in fiscal 2006, including a salary of $975,000.

He has not offered to work for less even though stock price has plumeted during his watch.

It’s cheering to know that capitalism is alive and well!

1 comment:

Brewin' Ben said...

Get an education, make circuit city more money and they wont let you go, but I guarantee most of the workers let go had little is any specialized skills making them worth their pay grade. What is so wrong with facing up to the fact that in non skilled jobs your expendable, instead of whining, get something education or skills wise that makes you WORTH SOMETHING more than a button pusher...