The underpinnings of economic justice in a free market system are strong unions, competition for workers, steady, stable employment, and captains of industry who are decent citizens and patriots. Every generation must fight anew to maintain a balance between opportunity and regulation, reward and exploitation. Under this Republican leadership, power imbalances between employer and employee are reaching dangerous levels. Only union strength prevailed against the tendency of capitalism to sink workers to a subsistence level. But unions have not spread into the new service and information worker class.
Republicans are hostile to unions.
Bush, Jr., just allowed Mexican scalawags to compete with Texan Teamsters on U.S. highways. As I write this, Bush is threatening to break up an imminent strike by NorthWest's mechanics. Republicans argue that competition for workers replaces unions to buoy up wages. This too, is disappearing. Corporate compensation managers conduct surveys and share information with competitors about wages, having the effect of price fixing and deflating wages.