Outsourcing (Off-Shoring):
Due to the state of America's economy for the past three years and the unemployment issues we've run into, the idea of moving jobs outside of the country has become a political hotspot in our countries presidential debate.
American citizens scream unfair play when they hear that their jobs are being shipped outside of the US because the labor is cheaper elsewhere and the manufacturing safety restrictions cost less. This is one particular reason why outsourcing (a.k.a. off-shoring) has blown up on the public agenda, and is no longer an issue that can be brushed to the side.
The combination of unswervingly high unemployment numbers, anemic job growth, corporate malfeasance and escalating job outsourcing has caused John Kerry to make it a point, as he attacks George Bush's domestic economic policy as a whole.
Since we're within eying distance of the presidential election, both presidential candidates are jockeying for a position to be on the "correct side" of the jobs debate. As policy actors, Bush and Kerry are the two main proponents of the issue, though companies, labor unions, workers, OCIA, foreign lobbies and the American people as a whole have strong investments within the issue.
Proponents of Big Business, and Big Business themselves, are making severe efforts in defending their positions within the argument by using the most typical agenda denial techniques. While some companies simply claim that this is not an issue, others use statistics and accusations of misrepresentation to deter the point of the argument. Foreign lobbies find the opposition to the actions confusing but fully support the actions by American companies.
Though outsourcing has been occurring for decades the problem has most recently been highlighted by the economic downturn our country took in 2001. The policy window flew open because of our economic unemployment numbers. Neither presidential candidate has completely solidified their stance in the argument.
Bush has claimed that action needs to be taken over the fact that American jobs are being shipped overseas, yet his administration has been nothing but a catalyst for the action; he has been supporting foreign trade agreements for the entirety of his time in office and refuses to place any limits on international trade in general.
Kerry on the other hand, has called to support American workers wherever possible, including dealing federal contracting to Americans when possible, proposing a tax form to encourage companies to create jobs in America and wants to allocate more money to the education of our kids so they have a better chance at the job market.
The solution to the problem has proven illusive for even the most advanced economic analysts. On the one hand, our innately capitalist society dictates that we allow our companies to make their money in the best way they can, but at the same time, we need to maintain and protect the well being of our population. The current possible solutions seem unreasonable and difficult to implement.
Some have considered taxing all companies and throwing this money into a general pool for the American public, even though companies who don't engage in outsourcing wouldn't be so willing to let this pass. Part of the reason corporations use off-shoring is to take advantage of loopholes and deductions that actually reduce the tax liability of US-based multinational corporations. So if those tax breaks can be removed by taxing them more, the idea might hold some water.
There are a few who claim that the economic system for this labor market problem will balance itself out. Most people, however, advocate legislative approaches to stem the outsourcing tide. As a country, America has always looked for economic solutions by analyzing the market forces, entrepreneurial innovation and government-supported research instead of cowering behind legal sanctions and protectionist policies.
This is not a problem I believe will simply go away, and there is no way the American people will idly sit by and watch their jobs go out the window because the breeze of money is blowing across the pacific, and companies find the fresh air there invigorating.
At the same time, it's rare to find a company advocating anything less then the bottom line. Most CEO's would be tarred and feathered before their shareholders would approve of not making the best effort in order to provide the most lucrative investments possible. With the massive amount of opposition that has been expressed by the American people through the media, this isn't necessarily an issue that can simply go on ignored.
No one wants to make a specific claim as to how we are going to solve this problem within our country because there are massive benefits and disadvantages to outsourcing in our country. Neither side of the argument is interested in letting the issue go undealt with.
There is little doubt in my mind that outsourcing as an issue will reach policy formulation and adoption stages once some sort of reasonable solutions is discovered and/or agreed upon. The issue is too hot to simply be an election issue that will go unheard from again. The job market is one thing that Americans always pay attention to because it is a part of all of our lives, and affects us directly.