Posted on 04/16/2016 2:55:11 AM PDT by lowbridge
Los Angeles was once the epicenter of apparel manufacturing, attracting buyers from across the world to its clothing factories, sample rooms and design studios.
But over the years, cheap overseas labor lured many apparel makers to outsource to foreign competitors in far-flung places such as China and Vietnam.
Now, Los Angeles firms are facing another big hurdle — California's minimum wage hitting $15 an hour by 2022 — which could spur more garment makers to exit the state.
Last week American Apparel, the biggest clothing maker in Los Angeles, said it might outsource the making of some garments to another manufacturer in the U.S., and wiped out about 500 local jobs. The company still employs about 4,000 workers in Southern California.
"The exodus has begun," said Sung Won Sohn, an economist at Cal State Channel Islands and a former director at Forever 21. "The garment industry is gradually shrinking and that trend will likely continue."
In the last decade, local apparel manufacturing has already thinned significantly. Last year, Los Angeles County was home to 2,128 garment makers, down 33% from 2005, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data. During that period, employment also plunged by a third, to 40,500 workers. Wages, meanwhile, jumped 17% adjusting for inflation, to $698 per week — although that can include pay for top executives, as well as bonuses, tips and paid vacation time.
(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...
I couldn't agree more. In addition, I've observed that government officials want to be loved and seen as heroes to the "downtrodden", regardless of the future consequences of their actions.
“I’ve observed that government officials want to be loved and seen as heroes to the “downtrodden”,
And the government officials are the main cause of them being the ‘downtrodden’.
Being liberal means never to have to say you are sorry. It's all about the unions, I bet. I have not seen the fine print, but, I bet the a unionized shop gets a break on the $15 / hour.
“If workers are going to get a wage they can survive on, there has to be public education involved. Younger generations don’t demand “made in the USA”. Except for discount store merchandise, low wages aren’t causing the merchandise to cost less. It’s endorsers, corporate profit, and transportation sources that get the savings.”
Raising wages will certainly require raising prices. Rising prices will result in less demand and a lower standard of living.
The economic impacts of raising the minimum wage is very similar to the impacts of imposing tariffs on imports.
“The fact that no one wants to pay an extra $10 for a tee-shirt so that someone that they have never met can afford a 70 inch TV.”
Isn’t that exactly what those pushing for tariffs to protect jobs are asking for: that everyone should pay another $10 for their Tshirts so a select few can have bigger TV sets?
Having a job raises your standard of living. More tariffs, less income taxes.
That is a ridiculous supposition. How can anyone have a rational discussion with that BS flung out as a starting point? That is why Cheap Labor Express whores are losing the battle.
Especially when lots of other people are excited to work hard to earn a lot less.
Amen to that!
It appears that the Garment Industry is another Industry that will be searching for new ways to automate so as to reduce the costs of Labor.
A question I have though is this, what will become of all of the workers that used to be gainfully employed producing actual ‘things’ when all of those things are now completely produced by machines?
Easy; imagine improving yourself and you still can’t get a decent wage. I oppose these minimum wage hikes because they are job-killers, but I assume they are in the works because most of the remaining jobs in this country are McJobs. The information superhighway has let many white-collar jobs follow blue-collar jobs overseas; what is left for many are jobs providing for the material comforts of the 1%. If everyone went to college/trade school, we would still have this same problem: Employers prefer to pay foreign workers much less than they would have to pay us, so our available jobs are Wal-Mart greeters, burger flippers, and dog walkers.
In my area illegal braceros were already getting $10/hour (25% above minimum wage) 10 years ago; $15/hour would not let you start a family in the NYC metro area (including northern NJ).
Even worse, many union jobs are paid a multiple of the minimum wage; for example, a city contract may require workers on a project, in addition to being 51% minority/women, are paid 125% of the minimum wage - THAT is why the unions want it. The fact that wages killed so many jobs is meaningless to them...
Beyond just a play for votes, this is also part of the Social Security fix; those workers will be contributing more to SS (and income taxes). It is putting more of a payroll tax burden on companies as well (who have to match the SS).
A system where a full-time, fully trained worker cannot bring home enough money to survive on is what's not sustainable.
Why can’t government just stick to doing what it does best (nothing) and let the market take care of itself in terms of wages?
what their real endgame is will be to not just raise the lower echelon of workers, but to lower the upper echelon.
Equality for all. Just like Lenin wanted.
But but but $15.00 an hour is so down with the people.
I do think there are some here, like you, that give a damn about the country, some...
worthwhile to repeat some of Lenin’s quotes, which sound familiar to the Democrat party:
A lie told often enough becomes the truth.
The way to crush the bourgeoisie is to grind them between the millstones of taxation and inflation.
It is true that liberty is precious; so precious that it must be carefully rationed.
Give me four years to teach the children and the seed I have sown will never be uprooted.
http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/v/vladimir_lenin.html
you are not speaking for me, for sure.
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