IOP Panelists Discuss Pitfalls of Globalization

A crowd of about 100 union representatives, economists and students gathered at the John F. Kennedy School of Government Friday to listen to panelists and to discuss whether economic globalization has gone too far.

"Policy makers are quite clueless when it comes to deep questions of reforming the global economic system," said Dani Rodrik, Hariri professor of international political economy. "Proposals out of Washington are quite timid."

As American participation in the global economy has increased, domestic workers have experienced 20 years of extremely sluggish real wage growth and an increase in inequality at both the wage and earnings and family income levels, conference participants said.

"In real terms, two-thirds of [American] workers are earning less than they did 10 years ago," said Susan Collins, a professor of economics at Georgetown University and a senior fellow at the Brookings Institute.

Collins said she was hesitant to attribute this problem entirely to economic globalization, noting that domestic policy reform-which includes income tax credits to low-wage-earning workers and improved educational standards--is as important as reform in the foreign arena.

"This is not to imply that globalization isn't important, but to think before saying that it's the driving force," she said.

Thea Lee, an economist for the AFL-CIO, disagreed.

"Workers who try to organize face a 60 percent chance of plant closure... and possible capital flight to a foreign market," she said. "Globalization is used as a hammer to hit workers over the head when they try to do something good in the domestic economy."

Trade unionists at the conference supported Lee's views.

"[America] should insist with its trading partners that they have policies that level the playing field [between American and foreign workers]," said William Lucy, president of the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists.

Willie L. Baker, a union executive, agreed. "[We] do not want to see American foreign policy taken over by [the interests of] American corporations."

On Friday, both those looking toward domestic policy solutions and those looking toward foreign policy solutions agreed that America urgently needs to address the issues raised by workers' organizations.

In this respect, Sibal S. Holt, secretary-treasurer of the Louisiana chapter of the AFL-CIO, said she saw the Institute of Politics event as a success.

She said the conference effectively opened "a dialogue with those who create policy" and union representatives.

The forum was part of a larger African-American labor-leader summit on Friday.