Socialism Explained: In My Own Words And Experience


I used to be a regular shopper at Target when I was in college. It was right down the street from campus, and the two-story building sold nearly everything I might add to my shopping list. Despite this, I haven’t shopped there since 2008, when I heard word that Target donated a sizable sum to the Michele Bachmann campaign.

I also own stock in Target, which I inherited from my grandmother. As a shareholder, every so often I receive a packet in the mail that grants me the opportunity to vote on company policy, and elect new seats to the Board of Directors.

BachmannNewsweek

Yet I never shop there. I contribute nothing to the success of the business. So, why do I get to have such a say in the company?

Do you think the average employee at Target has this privilege? The college student who cashes you out before you leave? The mother who organizes the shelves so you can find what you’re looking for with ease? Those dedicated minimum-wagers who literally put their lives at risk every Black Friday season? Do they get to vote on company policy?

Wikimedia
Wikimedia




By default, absolutely not. Why? Because they’re not shareholders. They don’t contribute anything towards the company’s success. They’re not even a part of the company. They just work there.

That’s the way business is run in our deeply-flawed Capitalistic system. Businesses show more loyalty to those fortunate enough to own stock. They do their best to turn a profit and generate dividends for their shareholders, while the people that really count starve on minimum wage. Some work so hard, they work themselves to death over it.

In a Socialist system, this would be completely different. Socialist principles give workers control over the means of production. By giving employees a voice in their company, it empowers them in the same way that the ballot box empowers the citizen. Socialism is not an antithesis to Democracy; it is an extension of Democracy. Why should Democracy be abandoned at the time-clock?

Why should the shareholders be anyone besides the dedicated and hard-working employees of that company? Does anyone else have the right to make company policy? Who knows the company better than those who work there? Who else knows the intimate details of every inefficiency? Is there a better way to increase productivity than by giving your employees a stake in the business profits? Can you think of a better way to cut corruption and waste than to make everyone answerable to each other?

That’s precisely why this business model (also known as “worker-owned cooperatives”) works so well. A study by Scottish researchers at St. Andrews, Edinburgh Napier, and Stirling Universities revealed that, “in terms of their employment and sales growth, employee-owned firms do better than non-employee owned firms.” Success stories abound, including those for ventures like Mondragon, a global federation of 257 cooperative businesses. As one of Spain’s largest business groups, it generates more than $14 million in revenue across the finance, education, industrial, and retail sectors. Since its founding by a Catholic priest in 1956, Mondragon has outperformed “traditional” companies on employee compensation and unemployment rates, thriving in recession after recession.

If Target was to adopt this model, I believe many things would change for the better. But let us not forget the changes that many will see as “for the worst.” I assure you that, if Target employees were in charge of the company, they would not have donated more than $41,000 to a politician who was hell-bent on abolishing the minimum wage, believes affordable heath care will be “miraculously” repealed by God’s own hand, and argues that a low tax rate on the poor and middle class is the problem, not the solution. I, for one, would rather see that $41,000 invested somewhere else. I know many on the right would disagree. Then again, that shouldn’t be our choice. We don’t work at Target, so why should we have a say?

I know by not shopping at Target, I do very little to affect the bottom line. But as an empowered customer, I have the right to choose where I want to shop. I adamantly refuse to offer money to a business, bragging that I’m supporting the working class, when all I am doing is destroying it. But I’ll gladly accept any dividends Target wishes to offer me. I hear Costco is one of the best places to work in retail. They’ve got some better deals, too.

 

Clayton Ousley lives in Ann Arbor, MI with his beautiful daughter, Charlotte (a German Shepherd/Alaskan Malamute mix). He has a BA in History and Intelligence Studies from Notre Dame College, and is currently working on his MA in Military History from Norwich University. He enjoys playing his bagpipes, reading, hiking, and cooking ethnic foods.