Raise the Hammer

I wouldn't think this has anything to do with going out and replacing all of our existing equipment or telling every city employee to throw out their Catperpillar boots, and more about new purchases.

I don't know the full history behind Westinghouse but I believe they were very good community partners. I am not sure there is any (or many) similarities here. This isn't Canada versus the US even though a couple of recent examples make it seem as such. It's a foreign investor taking advantage of tax payer incentives then stripping all of these jobs from Canada all for what is likely/possibly related to the 'Buy America' fiasco down south. That is about US vs. Canada.

We need to not allow this to happen again and I think by setting an example of how we will treat these companies going forward, might just have the ability to start change. The federal government is really the one that needs to give it's head a shake but onus should still be on business to act in good faith and not look for loopholes in our system, make some bonus cash and say see ya when it's obvious they really had no plan on staying here in the first place.

These companies are setting a precedents leaving because our wages are too high. We perhaps as a global economy, should determine what these types of jobs - maybe all jobs, are really worth and that is the cost of manufacturing. Product quality and business relationships need to be what decisions are based on. Not cost. That viscous circle has to stop. A coffee should cost the same. Organic shouldn't mean expensive. Taste, presentation, customer service, the companies presence in the community, should all be what our purchasing is based off of. I want to buy a product from a person/company I believe in and that I feel ads great value to our communities. I want to know they have their employees best interest at heart first and from there, are doing a good job at marketing why customers should by there based on these factors - not lowest prices guaranteed.

Lower prices! Slash! Even lower prices. Slash. Slash

Only problem is so are wages. Jobs. True value. Cost of living. The ability to eat healthy food and buy safe products because all we can afford on these slashed wages are fast food and dollar store crap.

Then governments put forth all these rules that make it so you can't even raise your own chicken to eat healthy and save money, or the cots of running farms sky rockets because of bureaucracy so local options are becoming less and less. Our ability to chose local or Ontario or Made in Canada products, dwindling. Our sense of pride in supporting 'our peeps', is being taken away from us by businesses just like this one.

It's kind of like you throwing a snowball at me on the playground yesterday and 'shooting my eye out', and getting a slap on the wrist - or just a 'hey, they wasn't nice as in this case'. We'll replace snowball with US Steel. Then a new law is put into place today and tomorrow I throw a snowball at you and I shoot your eye out (I'm Caterpillar), but now I am not allowed to go out for recess the rest of the year - well back in the day it was the strap and no eyes fell out but how about 'eyes falling out' symbolizes jobs. :)

It wasn't okay yesterday and it still wasn't okay today but someone finally had the private parts to stand up and say NO MORE and change the rules and the reprimand.

Caterpillar may be one of many doing much the same thing, but someone needs to be the example of what the fall-out for being a bad community partner is going forward.

What if Hamilton was an early leader for something major. From one or two London stores (not sure how many we are talking about here), to an entire City, to ... What if this spread across Ontario or Canada for that matter? Maybe globally in response to how they may have treated jobs in other countries they do business in and their reach is pretty substantial.

Comment edited by lawrence on 2012-02-09 16:26:40