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JOBS KEEP MOVING OVERSEAS--WHY?

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Are you surprised by this?  Our tax code is so out of date, our educational system is so far behind so many other countries, we have imposed ridiculous barriers to the immigration of skilled workers, and an overvalued US dollar all are combining together causing more and more jobs to flow overseas. 

The Wall Street Journal recently carried an excellent print piece on April 19, 2011 by David Wessel, "Big U.S. Firms Shift Hiring Abroad."

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704821704576270783611823972.html?KEYWORDS=David+Wessel

The video version of this article is also included in the following link:

http://online.wsj.com/video/news-hub-globalization-means-less-us-jobs/07B46F49-FAB4-496A-93A4-53EB31D20762.html?KEYWORDS=David+Wessel

As stated in the article, the U.S. Department of Commerce reported that companies cut their work forces in the U.S.  by 2.9 million during the 2000s while increasing employment overseas by 2.4 million.  In the 1990s, jobs were added in the US at the rate of 4.4 million and 2.7 million abroad.  Quite a distinctive difference.

The only reason for this, as many of you may think is not lower wages overseas, although that does play into it.  Many of the executives interviewed in the article suggest that one of the many reasons that this overseas hiring occurs is that as their own companies business increases overseas, they hire locally.  Now that certainly make sense with retail companies like Wal-Mart, etc., but does it make sense with GE and Caterpillar as their executives seem to suggest. 

We know that we need to create jobs in the United States right now.  It would seem that that is clearly understood by everyone.  Well if that is the case, why isn't someone doing something about it.  Instead of bickering, Congress get off your backsides and work together and get it solved. 

I'm sorry, but in my view it would make more sense instead of lowering the tax rate for the highest earners, so why not instead give tax breaks to those companies who absolutely bring back jobs from overseas;  or to those companies who create new jobs that were not in their company previously; or why not provide training to the current workers so that they improve their skills for the future tied with our excellent community college system.  I am sure there are other ideas.  Great ideas perhaps, but anything that would stop this hemorrhage of jobs overseas--and efforts that will then improve our tax collections and therefore our debt right here in the USA. 

C'mon Congress let's get moving!!!!

Bob
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