This Wall Street Journal article (link here) discusses the newest turn to the much debated Trans-Pacific Partnership that President Obama and Congress have been negotiating. It seems that athletic wear giant Nike is getting in on the action. The company says that if Congress approves the President's ability to fast track the partnership and to implement it that "the deal would ease the creation of 10,000 manufacturing and engineering jobs in the US." However, the article also states that the rise in Nike jobs could result in the loss of jobs with other companies.This report comes at time when people are worried that the partnership will be highly damaging to the US economy and that it will cause unemployment to rise by outsourcing jobs.
So, with mixed messages of job growth and job loss concerning the TPP, do you think the deal would be good or bad for the US economy? Especially considering the fact that the country is just recently getting to a "healthy" place with employment levels.
Personally, if the fast track is approved for the partnership, I think there will be loss of jobs in specific industries (e.g. automotive industry and agricultural industry for rice). I do not think that the total number of jobs lost (via outsourcing for example) in the US will be necessarily greater than the total number of jobs created in the US. Furthermore, I do not believe that congress would vote up a policy that would ultimately harm the overall US economy, but then again I am uncertain with that since not all of the TPP guidelines have been revealed. Finally, if certain industries are to be negatively impacted by the TPP, the government should warn those industries' employees to be prepare for the worst outcome or the government should prepare policies to protect those employees
ReplyDeleteI agree with Veeral that the TPP will most likely create a loss of jobs for specific industries. I also think that Nike's recent involvement is somewhat concerning. I think that some people are concerned about the TPP because they believe that it will give too much power to certain companies and industries. By Nike attempting to influence the decision of the government it shows how influential companies believe that they are.
ReplyDeleteI agree with both Veeral and Bronte that I think that the TPP will likely create a loss of jobs. I think that it makes sense that Nike is getting involved in the TPP because it could help to reduce costs for the company by having the US create a partnership with Asian countries. I agree with Veeral that I do not think Congress would vote in a policy that would hurt the US economy, but you never know.
ReplyDeleteI think that the scariest part is there is really no way to know how the TTP will effect the US. While we can speculate all day about who/which corporations are involved in negotiations, which countries will gain/lose and how, there is no way to really know at this point. To me, a guess that US jobs overall will not be hurt is just as fair a guess as claiming that the US will lose a lot of jobs and tax revenue.
ReplyDeleteWhile I do think that a trade agreement like TTP is inevitable and necessary, the fact we don't even know exactly who is in the room negotiating this is pretty concerning to me. I do not think that fast track is inherently bad, however it seems that there will be no real time for economists to analyze the deal to judge job and tax loss before Congress has to vote on it.
I agree that the TPP will lead to job losses in some industries, but it may be balanced out by gains in other areas. It's difficult to gauge the net effects of trade liberalization because it always makes some better off and some worse off. I agree with Bronte that it's concerning to see Nike getting involved in the debate. When big corporations get involved in government decisions, the interests of the country as a whole might not be well represented.
ReplyDeleteIt does seem that if the TPP agrees to this fast track partnership with Nike, that they will mostly likely create a loss of jobs for workers in specific industries. I would hope that the government would not agree to Nike's deal with the pure motive of maintaining control. It's alarming to me that Nike can be this influential on the government, and is scary that a corporation may have this much political power. Also, I do not think it would be smart for the TPP to enter this partnership due to the fact that the economy is just now fully recovering from the financial crisis, and we really have no idea what entering this partnership would do to the economy at this point in time.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely agree. I do not think we have been given enough information about the TTP to make a solid argument for or against it yet. It seems like trade liberalization would have positive effects on certain sectors of the economy where other sectors would incur negative effects. The countries that would benefit from this partnership are the ones that have already built their economies around the positively effected sector.
ReplyDeleteI also believe it is concerning to see big corporations becoming involved in the fast track decision. Although I would hope congress wouldn't vote in a policy that could be damaging to our economy, they are still politicians and some may act off their own motives (compensation, favors, or pressures by big corporations).