A 'New Protectionism' for Programmers and Others

Computerworld - Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan and others have warned against protectionism as a solution to joblessness, saying trade barriers will only delay inevitable adjustments and leave the U.S. less competitive.

They're right about trade barriers, but we need protectionism -- of a kind appropriate to what's happening now. The "New Protectionism" will safeguard the three P's: people, productivity and planet.

The people who need protection are workers around the world. American workers -- programmers and systems analysts as well as help desk staffers and factory hands -- can't alone absorb the shock of Information Age transformation. But the low-wage foreign workers who are the beneficiaries of U.S. outsourcing need protection, too, from the U.S. business practices that profit from the lack of foreign standards for safety, health and minimum pay.

Productivity also needs protection from megabusiness. Isn't productivity soaring? Yes, but today's increases come mostly through manpower cost reductions. Squeezing the turnip doesn't create a juicier turnip. We need to boost the right kind of productivity. The creation of new wealth through innovation is being undermined by the Draconian cost-cutting mentality that intimidates once-vibrant IT staffs, R&D centers and corporate cultures in general.

The planet needs protection from outdated practices, too. Pollution controls in Third World countries don't match those in the West, and the resultant cost savings flow into U.S. companies' bottom lines. The cleanup and health care costs will be borne by the general public everywhere.

What should we do? What new form of protectionism will safeguard people, productivity and planet? That needs to be worked out once we have our objectives straight. Here are four suggestions to help stimulate a dialogue:

1. Create an Information Age WPA. Invest tens of billions in new-era enterprises that will create up to 10 million new jobs in the U.S. These enterprises will require the hard-to-automate "hyperhuman" skills -- such as creativity, discovery and responsibility -- that will define tomorrow's better jobs. These are the jobs that will endure, beyond the reach of job-eating automation in factories, stores and offices. This program could be financed through incentives to investors, or by reversing the present tax cuts.
   
   These tax reductions are supposed to stimulate investment and thus jobs. But today's typical investments go into companies that source and market globally, not just locally. We need a program, public or private, that funnels money into enterprises that deliver next-generation employment here and now.



2. Get other countries to treat their workers right. Through trade agreements, motivate our trading partners to give their citizens the same health, safety and minimum-wage benefits that companies are obliged to confer in the U.S. Eliminate the reason for the cheapness of cheap foreign labor. This will level the playing field, making American employees competitive while improving lives everywhere.



3. Accelerate the right kind of productivity. Get beyond the turnip squeezing of
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