|
|
ONLINE FEATURES
Book Reviews
BW Video
Columnists
Interactive Gallery
Newsletters
Past Covers
Philanthropy
Podcasts
Special Reports
BLOGS
Auto Beat
Bangalore Tigers
Blogspotting
Brand New Day
Byte of the Apple
Economics Unbound
Eye on Asia
Fine On Media
Green Biz
Hot Property
Investing Insights
Management IQ
NEXT: Innovation
NussbaumOnDesign
Tech Beat
Working Parents
TECHNOLOGY
J.D. Power Ratings
Product Reviews
Tech Stats
Wildstrom: Tech Maven
AUTOS
Home Page
Auto Reviews
Classic Cars
Car Care & Safety
Hybrids
INNOVATION
& DESIGN Home Page Architecture Brand Equity Auto Design Game Room SMALLBIZ Smart Answers Success Stories Today's Tip INVESTING Investing: Europe Annual Reports BW 50 S&P Picks & Pans Stock Screeners Free S&P Stock Report SCOREBOARDS Hot Growth 100 Mutual Funds Info Tech 100 S&P 500 B-SCHOOLS Undergrad Programs MBA Blogs MBA Profiles MBA Rankings Who's Hiring Grads | |
JUNE 28, 2004
German Unions, Not Workers, Are The Obstacle I believe rigid inflexibility of German work laws, not working hours, is the main issue, ("The lazy men of Europe no more?" European Business, June 7). Very few would mind working a few hours more, and in many areas a certain flexibility is already practiced. But our unions mentally haven't left the 1960s yet. Such flexibility imposes great cost for the employer or even managers and supervisors of the respective work groups, since penalties will be levied against them if their workers show too much flexibility. Also, while union membership is at an all-time low, about 75% of the Social Democrat members of Parliament are card-carrying union members and have an influence on public decisions that is way out of proportion to their actual size. Most workers in competitive industries -- and Germany still has a lot of them -- realize that if their jobs are to stay in Germany, we must distribute work smarter than we do today. And yes, also work a little more. Joerg Boese Suestedt, Germany Weak Greenback, Strong Gas Prices I agree with fellow reader Joel A. Claghorn's letter that falling dollar values (with more to come) are the most influential cause for surging oil prices ("The declining dollar's overlooked impact on oil prices," Readers Report, June 7, responding to "Energy: The big squeeze," News: The United States, May 17). With a record U.S. budget deficit, trillions of dollars in Chinese and other Asian central bank vaults awaiting eventual disposal, plus an impending rush to trade dollar holdings by individuals and institutions for the now stable euro, it should not surprise us if the barrel hits the $50 mark come this fall. The endemic dumping of local currencies into their economies by Asian governments to sustain so-called manufacturing export competitiveness is not helpful either. OPEC is shrewd enough to resist the pressure to exchange its only exportable commodity for bundles of paper notes, except perhaps the Saudis who have their own reasons. The price increases of other commodities always influenced by political manipulation of the economy, like steel and milk, are not isolated phenomena. The Fed could as well start sponging up the over-spill of greenbacks and hike interest rates after all. Salim A. Khan Dhaka, Bangladesh   The Balkans Are Part Of Europe, Too In "France's crackdown on Islamic radicals" (International Outlook, June 7), John Rossant states: "Close to 10% of France's population is of Muslim background, a higher share than for any other country in Europe." In fact, there are a number of countries in Europe where more than 10% of the population is of the Muslim faith, including Albania, Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Serbia and Montenegro, and -- depending on what is considered to be a European country or the geographic limits of the European continent -- Georgia, Turkey, and Kazakhstan. There are more than 30 million persons of the Muslim faith in Europe. Barry Zitser West Hartford, Conn.
| | |
 Copyright 2004, by The McGraw-Hill Companies Inc. All rights reserved.Terms of Use | Privacy Notice |
Printer-Friendly Version
