Bailout Consequences: the Unspoken Fear

Although the United States was born of violence (Revolutionary War) and was held together by violence (Civil War), our country has been relatively free of organized internal violence, particularly when it comes to economic disputes and financial crises. The Whiskey Rebellion (1790′s), Haymarket Riot (1880′s), Pullman Strike (1890′s), and Big Strike (1930′s) are notable exceptions.

To oversimplify, these rebellions/riots/strikes occurred when ordinary people felt betrayed by their government and/or the powerful and came together shouting a phrase made famous by the 1976 movie Network: “I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take this anymore.” No one wants to think about it or talk about it, but if what’s going on right now continues (as predicted) and gets worse (as predicted), it’s naive to think that the masses won’t eventually react in the way desperate people usually react.

Beginning last Friday and continuing through the weekend, workers laid off Friday from Republic Windows and Doors in Chicago refused to leave the factory when they were told the business was closing. According to the New York Times, these jobless protesters were fearful and outraged. They hadn’t been told the company was in trouble and, in fact, had been told that everything was okay when they asked about heavy equipment being removed from the facility. According to the employees, they weren’t given a 60-day WARN notice, and they’re owed vacation and severance pay.

Though the employee “occupation” of the factory was quiet throughout the weekend, the workers promised to stay through Christmas if necessary. President-elect Obama even weighed in to urge the company to honor its commitments to the employees.

But the employees aren’t just mad at their company. They’re furious at their government and the bailout beneficiaries. The employees believe that Bank of America, the company’s major creditor, prevented the company from paying the laid off employees the benefits they’re owed. As one employee protested: “Here the banks like Bank of America get a bailout, but workers cannot be paid? The taxpayers would like to see that bailout go toward saving jobs, not saving CEOs.”

Other workers holed up in the factory summed up what is or should be the unspoken fear of the government and those profiting from the bailouts: “The fact is that workers really feel they have nothing to lose at this point . . . . I’m fighting for my family, and we’re not going anywhere.”

If your company is in trouble, talk to your employees. Ask for their help. Get their ideas. Make them feel part of a heroic effort to save the store. Let them know we’re in this together. There’s going to be plenty of employment litigation and union activity resulting from our present economic crisis and the way many employers are choosing to handle it. That’s not what I’m worried about.