Non-Economic Solutions for Economic Problems

A consistent talking point and rallying cry for all politicians is to create jobs. Every ideology has some platform dedicated to job growth or change. Yet the two most prominent political parties, Democratic and Republican, have not addressed the true stimulant for job growth and wage increases that have predicated every “boom” in our capitalist society. President Trump and the majority of the Republican party had continually stuck with the age old supply-side economic theory: if you cut taxes on the wealthy and corporations, they will take the money they save a reinvest it in the economy, creating production and job growth. With the rise of Trump Republicanism, Democrats have moved to the left, slowly embracing a job guarantee system along with demand-side economics. The government will provide a job if you cannot find one yourself, along with lower taxes for lower- and middle-class people, ensuring their ability to continuously buy, causing production to match demand. Both sides decide to use economic principles to drive economic growth, but I think this is the wrong way to approach the issue.

The market, in general, has been able to take care of itself. Monopolies, poor business practices, predatory lending, and discriminatory hiring have always been issues, but do not require as much of a government presence as some think. Especially with the activism and transparency that instantaneous communication has enabled, ‘public policing’ of these sectors has grown more viable. If a company is doing something wrong, not only is there the possibility of a ‘market reaction’ as some see as the antidote to any government regulation, but also the very real and current practice of public shaming and boycotts. In no way am I advocating for lowering government regulation. But only pushing for more non-economic solutions to economic solutions.

Every industry that has really blossomed in the past 20 years has been the result of private development of an extremely useful product. With the continuous transition of public R&D being devested, private R&D has picked up the slack. While I might not agree with this development, it is how the market is now. Because of this shift, two things have happened in response to the potential financial windfall: private development has sped up, and due to the increase, issues and research has become more complex and specialized. As companies race for patents and exclusivity, they pour huge amounts of capital into these endeavors to create new things.

As we become more advanced as a species, the jobs that had once been handled by humans, eventually will be taken over by machines. Just like the horse and buggy industry fought back against the car, any industry being subsumed by the new and improved will bemoan the job loss and continue to pass tax cuts for those who are left clinging to the old. The coal industry is facing this exact challenge. While President Trump and Republicans before him have massed large tax cuts and cut regulations that they claim were artificially hurting the industry, coal jobs have been decreasing for nearly 50 years. This is primarily due to increased investment in cleaner and cheaper sources of energy, and mechanization of the jobs. Jobs demanding manual labor are in the difficult position of being the most easily replaced by machines and being occupied by some of the most financially vulnerable populations. Those in these jobs not only make lower wages, but are also more susceptible to injury, depriving them of any money they did save. In order to help both the people losing work and those entering the new, advanced work force, the government must instead focus of equipping the workforce with the skills necessary to create the new industries and meeting the current need for educated skills.

The large tech companies, pioneering the new wave of jobs, products, and opportunities are increasingly employing highly skilled workers on HB-1 visas. It is in the company’s interest to cut costs in any reasonable way it can. Do these workers work for reduced pay? No they do not. So why do these companies go through these hoops and accept the risk of sudden immigration changes? Because in order to stay competitive in the industry, they need to hire the best and brightest workers, which they are not able to find in sufficient numbers in the United States. This is a clear problem that we as a country need to address.

Long term solutions are needed to solidify any county’s standing in the world. But because of their nature, they are usually the first to be cast aside and untenable because this would not appease voter’s immediate needs. These needs were caused by the very divestment of these essential services like education. In order to guaranteed our country continues to prosper and meet the future with new ideas and industries, we need to invest in long term solutions, the most important of which would be education. As problems become more complicated and low-skilled jobs become rarer, industries will need a highly educated workforce to continue to thrive. If they do not have that, they will look elsewhere. We are currently still riding the public investment in education from 80 years ago and counting on the coattails of only a handful of highly educated individuals. This is too perilous of a situation to put the future of our country in. it is time for a reinvestment in our future by ensuring that all have a rigorous and fruitful education.

#FitzFile