Why "efficiency" and "productivity" really mean more profits for corporations and less sanity for you.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

In the past 20 years, the US economy has grown nearly 60 percent. This huge increase in productivity is partly due to automation, the internet, and other improvements in efficiency. But it's also the result of Americans working harder—often without a big boost to their bottom lines. Oh, and meanwhile, corporate profits are up 20 percent.

Productivity has surged, but income and wages have stagnated for most Americans. If the median household income had kept pace with the economy since 1970, it would now be nearly $92,000, not $50,000.

Growth is back...

....but jobs aren't.

Labor pains...

Median yearly earnings of:

Union workers: $47,684

Non-union workers: $37,284

More and more, US multinationals are laying off workers at home and hiring overseas.

The US is part of a very small club of nations that don't require...

http://motherjones.c...g-harder-charts

Edited June 20, 2011 by 8TBVBN

[SMR 368]

The US is part of a very small club of nations that don't require...

http://motherjones.c...g-harder-charts

What's the point of requiring 24 hours off each week? Is there really an employer anywhere that pays people to work more than 144 hours a week?