Jobs

The pro's and con's of globalization. First off globalization started after WW 2 when the US guaranteed the safety of shipping across the oceans and products could be easily traded between countries. In the US the west coast was dominated by Hollywood and later by Silicon Valley and the east coast was all about the big banks and Wall Street. This left the middle west where the industrial base was located. As countries like China were able to tap into the US market they used their low labor cost, their lack of safety regulations and lack of concern about the environment to set up shops to produce manufactured goods at low prices. The prices were so low that US companies began to move their facilities to China. During the cold war period the US lost millions of manufacturing jobs and China move 500 million people out of poverty meaning wages increased from $62 per year to $16,000. That is the pro's. The con's meant wages for working people in the US stagnated for 40 years plus workers moved from jobs with benefits to no benefits. While this was going on US businesses reaped huge profits from the low labor cost so the gap between the rich and the poor widened and is still widening today. In the past 60 years, America witnessed a massive transfer of wealth from the middle class to the wealthiest families. In 1963 the richest families had 36 times the wealth of the middle income families and today it is 72 times as much. Trump was one of the first politicians to recognize how working people were hurt by globalization and began the process to change by explaining how China was abusing its people by working under slave like conditions and manipulating their currency to close down US industries. He brought this inequity to the general public and started import taxes on Chinese goods. Biden as also seen the unfairness and has continued the taxes. The Covid interfered with the global supply chain and made US companies aware of the hazard and the cost of transportation increased to the point where US companies are now bringing jobs back home (reshoring). This will continue into the future and mean many good paying jobs for Americans most of which will not require a college degree.