National Clothesline

It is amazing how your attitude can change over 30 years. When I was in law school, I worked one summer in a bread factory. I was a member of the Bakery and Confectionery Workers Union, and I was assigned to the hot dog roll section.

For more than eight hours each day, I watched a machine roll out cylinders of dough, which I made sure went into the slots on the sheet pan. I put the pans on a rack, and I rolled the full rack into a walk-in box filled with steam. I assume they were baked and packaged after that. It was so hot on the bakery (factory) floor that I lost 20 pounds that summer.

Occasionally, the sprinkler system would go off, and the managers would turn the fans keeping the workers cool toward the ceiling. I complained to my shop steward, who could not have cared less.

Today, I sympathize with the managers. The work needs to get done, even if the employees must endure a little discomfort now and again. The customer does not care why he did not get his hot dog rolls. If it happens more than once, he will look elsewhere for a supplier, and no one will have to worry about the heat because the ovens in the bread factory will be turned off, possibly for good.

In the 17 years I have been running my own law firm, no employee has ever missed a paycheck. I wish I could say the same about myself. Also, the bank has never asked an employee to personally guarantee a loan, and the IRS has never penalized an employee for failing to file the 940 return on time.

That’s why I have never felt bad about the size of my salary when the business is in a position to pay it.

Yet, we have legislators who believe that management is always bad and labor is always good. Those legislators are constantly trying to increase the costs on business owners and lessen the work of employees.

Health care? Employers should provide it.

Medical leave? Employers should provide it and keep jobs open, no matter what the hardship to the business.

OSHA? Hold employers responsible for all employee actions, but not the employee responsible.

The list is almost endless.

Today, it was reported that Michigan has passed a bill making employers responsible for fines and penalties for disclosing employee social security numbers.

Why doesn’t Michigan increase the penalties for identity theft, or force credit reporting companies to immediately rectify the fallout from identity theft? Instead, it puts one more burden on the employer.

Every year, Congress and the states attempt to add more laws restricting employers from running their businesses. Employees are given more and more “protections” without regard to the real cost they have for the business. It is a horrid situation.

Where is the reward to the businessperson for working hard and taking the risk of keeping a business alive and supporting the families of its workers?

It has also recently been reported that the AFL-CIO has increased its budget for supporting labor-friendly politicians.

Perhaps you should consider supporting your trade association, the chamber of commerce, and other business-friendly organizations to level the playing field. Someone needs to look out for the people pulling the cart, not the people riding in it.

Every now and again, I write a soapbox piece for the National Clothesline. This is one of them.

If you need more convincing that employers need protection, I suggest you reread some of my earlier columns on substantive matters. They may scare you enough to take action.