So..Why ARE All Our Jobs Moving Overseas??

So…I was asked to look into what I feel may have caused a good number of our industries to outsource their jobs overseas. I spent the last day or so reading and going through some statistics. I’ve come up with a couple of reasons and opinions that I feel shed some light in MY eyes as to why this trend has been inching up over the years to the point of rocketing out of control. The questions that seems to coincide with “Why?” are “Who’s to blame?” or “Are we not good enough?”
I think, in the end, we have to look at our country and ourselves, as citizens, at what our home has become. As I have preached to anyone that will listen, accountability is the key to success. Hands down. No matter what you do. Or what it is you want to do. It has to be the foundation to which you base your work ethic. Accountability builds integrity. Integrity gives you power. And, this will start a chain reaction of success beyond belief. I think somewhere along the line there has been enough people that, to me, stopped realizing or refusing to acknowledge how critical integrity plays in the workplace. Like I said we all have to shoulder some of the blame. Whether it’s us, as workers, or our government. So, until we realize that our country, as a whole, has placed us in this situation where our very way of life is threatened.
The part the business sector has played in this will be scrutinized quite a bit. While there are not a lot of posted comments, I have talked to some people who disagree with me on many facets of my opinions. But, the one they seem to gravitate to is the fact that I give the companies and those in charge a fair shake when looking at issues. And I DO find myself siding with them more than not. I’ll buy that. But, I think we don’t give corporations an objective look, simply because they make a seemingly ungodly amount of money. But I will explain more on this later in the post.
Taking a look at the government, you’ll find that there’s a lot they refuse to divulge to the unsuspecting public. We really do put a lot of trust in Washington for some things we shouldn’t and question other issues we should but don’t. (Did I say that right??) Congress and the White House have had their crosshairs on businesses and corporations for quite some time. But are they really as villainous as they are made out to be?? Let’s take those evil greedy oil companies, for instance. (Picture Tommy Boy saying naughty and pointing) Who seem to have assigned seats once a month, in Congress, being made to answer for free enterprise. How can they be gouging out hard working Americans while they rake in record profits!!! Damn you Big Oil!! A closer look reveals that when it comes to taxes being paid, one of the giants, Exxon Mobil as well as all of them, has more than paid its share. To the tune of the whopping effective income tax rate of 42%. So, while they’re considered hiding and dodging from their rightful tax burden, the profit margin for oil and gas industry sits at only 6%. This places them #112 amongst the other major industries. To put it in a different way, they paid over $8 billion on revenue of almost $19 billion….in just the first quarter of this year. Oh man…I cannot wait until I have the opportunity to start my own business, create a relatively substantial amount of jobs, allow more money to pour back into the economy, have the satisfaction and feeling of accomplishment only to realize I have to give almost half of what I make to a government who’s real problem is the fact that they can’t do the simplest of math: balancing its checkbook. You know. The whole concept of keeping what’s going out of your piggy bank less than what you’re putting in there. Novel really. With all the taxes placed on goods exiting the country as opposed to the lack of taxes levied on those entering the country from abroad, it is becoming increasingly impossible for companies to operate profitably here in our United States. Let me add to that. Impossible to operate with an acceptable amount of return. You have to allow businesses to prosper. Why?? Because that’s how the free enterprise market works. The pinheads in D.C. continue to look to the richest companies and individuals to carry the burden due to its seemingly insurmountable lack of fiscal responsibility. As I’ve said before, the companies have the most to lose. You’re kidding yourself if you feel otherwise. Regardless of profits made or income lost. They aren’t responsible for just one mortgage, two cars, three kids and a loving spouse. They’re responsible for all those things TIMES THE NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES. And their stockholders. They bear the greatest risk and therefore have a right to have the better return. It all goes back to that pesky little phrase…return on investment. You know the same thing you want with your retirement. Our government has to make this country attractive to businesses if they want our jobs to stay put. Or they have every right to bolt. Period.

When it comes to what the companies get, as far as workers here in the U.S., I’m sure they are just out to pay the lowest wage for the most work. And you know what? That’s a fair thing to say. They are. In your household, how do you save money for a rainy day? You cut back on operating costs. Such as cable, entertainment, eating out, paid lawn care, etc. Especially, if you’re not receiving a fair service for your money. That’s fair enough, right? Without pigeonholing the vast majority of American workers, there are enough people out there that feel once they get a job, they’ve been given their birthright. And act accordingly. They just want to sit there and ride this whole money train until retirement. This is where the aforementioned accountability comes in play for us, as individuals. That percent of people, that live and prosper under our Nanny State, refuse to do anything more than the bare minimum and demand the maximum money. Number one, that’s not right. Number two, if you want businesses to pay their weight you have to pull yours. The irony here is that the Left continue to want to keep that inheritance tax on money that’s already been taxed and what they deem wasn’t properly earned by the heir in the first place. Awesome. (Another reason I can’t wait to make enough money where my kids will be okay.) Isn’t that what the lazy and bitter say?? My father worked and his father worked through the years for what we have and we deserve to keep what they fought for!! Really??? Gimme. Gimme. Gimme. Mine. Mine. Mine. All you’ve done is replace the word money with jobs. In reality, there’s zero difference in principle. And the Democrats are the “working class party”. Right? So, what we’ve done is back ourselves in a corner. With all the politically correctness out there and the lack of accountability, we are made to enable the small percentage of those who make us hard working people look bad to continue to bring our image down to keep doing what they’re doing. If you own a business and you’re not getting a return on the investment you’ve placed on the individual worker, you have that right to put your money somewhere else. Done. You do not owe them anything. Zilch. Is that right? Who really knows. But, it’s the cold hard truth. Jobs are an agreement that you agree to upon date of employment. You have to keep up your end of that bargain or you should have to face the consequences. I am not agreeing with America losing their jobs. Or wanting that to happen. I am merely stating what I think is fact. I have a friend that is gently urged to ensure that India gets a certain percentage of work he doles out. He’s mad and rightfully so. But, he’s a hard worker. He takes pride and believes in his ability. He just wants to know why? And my answer to that is that it’s in part that there is enough dead weight around that the head honchos want to see what an investment in India can produce. What they can get in return for an investment in someone that lives on a fraction of what we do. Until we hold each and every worker around us responsible for his or her actions, ability and integrity, the silent majority will watch their way of life squander away to a country where the workers are new to stable and good work. And, definitely better wages. Relative to the region, of course. (So, simmer down) I have someone close to me that told me once why he went into the profession that he did. He worked for himself. He told me that he had a union job and was young when he hired on. There were four or so of them, including him, around the work site. While he was working and the elders were sitting watching, he got annoyed. And rightfully so. It was at that point he decided to quit. He was damned if he was going to watch those around him feel they didn’t have to work and had the yoke put on him while they made more money than him. Today, he’s one of the most successful people I know. The next time you see that person saying he’s not doing anymore than he has to and screw the company, remind him there’s a billion people in China and India that will. Just don’t be threatening.

Before closing I want to touch on one last thing. So those who want to say that I just skimmed over and ignored it can’t say that I did. The fact of the matter is that the cost of labor is decisively lower than that of the United States. You really can’t deny that. It’s 100% correct. But let’s put that into perspective. The average income in the U.S. is somewhere in the range of $32k. To break it down further, we’ll take manufacturing jobs into the fold. Those jobs average around $36k-$41k. That’s roughly an increase of around 16%-ish above the average. In China, the average income is less than $200 a month. But, the manufacturing jobs are paying in the area of $300 a month. That’s a better than 50% raise over the average. So, while the numbers seem pitiful compared to what they pay us. They are doing, in China, what I thought we had been fighting for for their population since the Communists took over. To give them more dignity and self worth. A bigger say in their way and quality of life. The companies are doing just that. I read where workers are buying things they never dreamed of. Houses, cars. China is an emerging market. You can keep your head in the sand and wait for the Calvary that will never come or do what we need to have done from the beginning: Help Yourself. You cannot vilify the companies for moving their investments elsewhere where they see an acceptable rate of return. They’re not in the business to tread water. They’re here to make money. Which is the same reason we choose to get to work on time and be productive. It’s cliché’ but, in the end…it’s really all about the Benjamins. They don’t owe us what a lot good number of people believes that they do.
Contrary to what your opinion of this is, I want to make one thing clear. I do not think that moving jobs overseas is a good thing for our country. And I hope and pray we can reverse the trend. But we are the masters of our destiny. I believe that the core of the American workers are committed, diligent and deserve to profit, personally, from the fruits of their labors. I am merely giving my take on what the companies see about their situation through their eyes. And until we can pull up those less than motivated people to the level to which we know we all can perform, and most of us do perform, this is an employer’s market. Cut and dried. Like it or not, they’re in command until we make ourselves what we did years ago when America was its most profitable and prosperous, they’ll stay there: Indispensible.

Until next time…..