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What happens when workers aren't paid a decent wage?
Location: BlogsJim's Blog    
Posted by: Jim Hansen 2/9/2006
It should come as no surprise that the Transporation Security Administration is seeing very high turnover. It is symptomatic of priorities in Washington DC these days. Those who actually do the work are discounted.
It seems to me, if people really matter in an organization or business, they are paid an honest days wage for an honest days work, they are provided support in highly stressful conditions and protection from unreasonable hazards. I was struck by an article in the Washington Post today that the agency in charge of providing security for us at our airports (TSA) faces such a high turnover rate that they are asking for a significant increase in their budget so they can help their workers.

Is is symptomatic of the current way of thinking in Washington DC that in setting up this agency several years ago, the last thing Congress apparently considered was who was going to actually do the work. We've seen this too with the poor way in which men and women doing the work in the military in Iraq are compensated and protected.

For years, lots of no-bid contracts, subsidies and tax cuts to well-connected interests have taken huge chunks out of the public's budget that would otherwise go to pay the people who actually do the work. No one should be surprised that high turnover is a symptom of that way of thinking.

Wouldn't it be refreshing if Congress spent more time with the workers who show up every day to do the work - like those who work to keep our airports secure - than with those who hand out the big campaign contributions in DC?

See the full Washington Post Article. I also appreciate the discussion started in the forum on living wages which relates to this same concern.
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