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AlexMerced
04-05-2010, 05:54 PM
http://libertyisnow.blogspot.com/2010/04/new-york-shoots-itself-in-foot.html


New York Shoots itself in the Foot
This is a Response to this New York Times Article:

If you havn't seen my video on the Fallacy of Progressive Logic then I recommend you watch it to get a better appreciation for the frustration I have over the actions against "Illegal" internships which has several problematic assumptions...

1) An Intern can't REPLACE a job - Now while I've intervied, hired, and overseen academic marketing interships for Shane&Shawn and Greico Financial Training, I can safely say an intern can't replace specialized and skill labor. A business doesn't get applicants with the same experience level and skill that someone who can demand a wage brings, and the business and it's production would suffer if it were to attempt such a replacement. This drop in productivity and returns is punishment enough for such a poor business decision.

I doubt many would make this decision unless the market is already putting downward pressure on production costs in which case that jobs wouldn't exist much longer anyways. The sooner job losses occur in an economic adjustment, the sooner the capital tied up in that unproductive job can put to more productive means creating jobs somewhere else. Why would i say the job is unproductive? If the job were productive it would produce more value than it costs meaning there would be no reason to cut it. The interships I've overseen were productive exercises that helped developed skill and experience for those who participated in them who went to greater things.


2) This hurts the Adjusting Labor Force - You have two categories of people who are going through a pain ful adjustment...

College Graduates - This new crop of laborers are overwhelmed by the lack of experience and skills in an overcrowded labor market, meaning they must develop the skills and experience to demand a wage. If the amount of internships is violently reduced then less graduates can enter the labor market and climb up the wage ladder, since the surplus of skilled labor from layoffs pushes the price of unskilled/unexperience labor below the minimum wage, meaning the only other way to enter is through interships since no middle ground is allowed.

Layoffs from Shrinking Industries - This skilled and experienced labor faces a different problem, a lack of jobs that need their current skill set meaning they must develop a new one. The cost and time of education much of the time can be cost prohibitive but an unpaid internship can often be the cheapest method to develop new experience and skills to enter growing markets after overinvesting in a shriking one.

Just the threat of sanctions for "illegal internships" would severly discourage the supply of internships for these groups to have a speedier transition in this adjustment period. Again, while these groups adjust to a changing demand for labor the capital saved by businesses in certain tasks helps spur investment in growing areas meaning for new jobs to put these new skills and experience to use in.


3) Everyone is volunteering - If unpaid interns are putting long hours and handling what may be handeled by someone at some wage, then the effective market price for the labor is... 0. In that case to force an employer to pay more would be price fixing above the market price which will cause a surplus in labor (aka unemployment). Also to prevent voluntary labor at any price is just a violation of someones liberty.

AlexMerced
04-05-2010, 07:05 PM
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dannno
04-05-2010, 07:11 PM
Seems so obvious.

AlexMerced
04-05-2010, 08:31 PM
I know... it's really annoying how all beuracrats do such a good job of screwing up economics