Nords said:
Carpenters, plumbers, electricians, painters, mechanics... an entire service industry!
Expanding much further on HaHa's comment... around here you might be able to find a few plumbers left (NOT in sprinkler systems) and electricians that speak English.
On the unions issue - it's all rather sad. I've never been rah-rah union myself, in fact I once lost a job when I was working my way through school due to a union. I was working part-time, and the union boys decided to flex their union muscles and have the few of us part-timers get laid off. That way they would get more time and a half OT.
But it was the US union movement that shortened the workweek, helped get most of the benefits that we all wanted, no, we all thought we deserved. Now its all coming apart. Its like the deconstruction of America. How can companies that have higher wages, and provide health benefits, and pensions, and retiree health coverage, how can they compete against the Toyotas etc. etc. that don't do it?
How can say, an American Airlines complete here if Continental and Northwest are able to shake off their previous commitments? Will every major American company have to put themselves into bankruptcy to "compete" on the world stage now?
FYI, the $65 an hour that the media always mentions about Delphi UAW is wage + cost of benefits. As those of us who are Er'd know, those bennies are very expensive.
I read an article a couple days ago that said the average US worker who is covered by a company health plan is now paying an average of 24% of the actual cost of their family plan... wow, a whole 24%... Can you imagine the bitching and moaning there would be if they had to pay even 75% of their true costs? A lot of BMW's, Lexus, flat panel TV's, latte's etc. wouldn't be bought, to say nothing of all of the foreclosures that would result!
