JournalInquirer.com

Foul play abounds in testing economic times
CT@Work
Published: Thursday, July 30, 2009 12:08 PM EDT
Leo Canty

When David Ortiz ("Big Papi") smacks the ball in Fenway Park, it’s usually easy to tell whether it’s fair or foul. On the rare occasion when a ball kisses the line or flies high over the Pesky Pole, the umpire makes the call and the game moves on. If only everything was as easy as baseball.For instance, how would an umpire call some of the plays in these economic times?

Anthem is looking to dramatically raise its rates, forcing working families to pay 20 percent to 30 percent or more to have the same coverage — or less — than they have now. Older members may have to pony up an additional 50 percent or more for premiums. Attorney General Richard Blumenthal and others suspect Anthem may be looking for ways to price those who need and use health care out of the plan. Anthem’s 2008 profits totaled $225 million and it appears they’re swinging away to increase their bottom line for ’09.

The ump says, “Over the line.

”Wannabe business and industry umpires often cry foul whenever minimum-wage increases are proposed. Last week the federal base rose to $7.25 an hour. Connecticut’s minimum wage is $8 an hour, or $16,640 a year. That amounts to about $750 more per year than 2007. In East Hartford, a typical single wage-earner needs more than $20,000 a year to live a simple life. So you put in your time and work your eight hours a day, 40 a week. Oh, and forget about paid time off and benefits — there’s no such thing. For thousands of workers in this income bracket the reward is a paycheck that can’t pay the bills, living-wage initiatives notwithstanding. That low-wage economy is growing faster than we ship jobs off shore. So who benefits from a low-wage workforce? Ask Wal-Mart and its shareholders. They had $13.4 billion in profits last year.

That’s foul.

Pratt and Whitney is talking about layoffs, and rumors abound about relocating its headquarters. The pursuit of profit is paramount, so business practices such as axing workers, shipping jobs to Singapore, cutting benefits, and the like are fair play in the eyes of corporate giants. Owners, operators, and shareholders are first in line for distribution of the wealth.Workers, their families, our cities and towns, and the government that shelled out corporate welfare to subsidize the industry are left with the scraps — if there are any. Poor Pratt: It posted a first- and second-quarter profit that was down $903 million from the $1 billion profit over the same period last year.

It’s just not “fair.”

The disparity between the haves and have-nots is as easy to see as a Josh Beckett strikeout. And there are a lot more people living closer to the down side of this economy — pushed there by those who have the most and want more. Too many people need public services to support themselves. Now they are left with little else. The game now is not about how we can help, but if we should help, and who should pay in a fair way?

Connecticut’s wage earners with the best batting average — the 80,000 families earning more than $1 million a year — chip in about a third of the state income taxes collected. The remaining 1.2 million households pay the rest. Not fair, cry the wealthy umps and their defenders. But take a closer look: Those in the low-income bracket have a 12-percent commitment of their paychecks to help pay for state and local services. The top-tier earners effectively contribute 4.5 percent. Oh, and high-income families are not being chased out of their health-care plan, struggling to pay the rent, or worrying about their job heading to Singapore. In perspective, progressive tax proposals are all softball pitches.

The calls revolving around people’s lives and the economy may not be as easy to make as baseball’s but, with so much at stake, we shouldn’t be playing games with them.

Leo Canty is executive secretary of the Connecticut AFL-CIO and chairman of the board of the Connecticut Health Foundation. He lives in Windsor.