General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: The sad truth behind yesterday's unemployment numbers [View all]Purplehazed
(179 posts)Like the Amsterdam Stock Exchange founded in 1602 where wealthy landowners financed expeditions of the Dutch East India Company. Captains and Sailors were employees to be paid i.e. a cost to the bottom line. Or perhaps the era of Andrew Carnegie who hired guards that killed striking workers looking for a wage increase while the company was profiting immensely. There were times when some businesses were fixtures in cities and towns and actually built some of the infrastructure, but again, that was for business. They needed to keep the goods flowing in and out of the factory and they needed to have a stable local workforce. If the business owners were incredibly wealthy, they may have paid for a library or a school.
Sadly there was no gilded age where sharing profits with the workers was common. There have been enlightened businesses that have and have prospered as well. It would be great if that actually becomes a trend.