privatization

Many people have been wondering who holds the most influence over our new president. My opinion is that organized labor commands the real power in the white house.

Labor unions have always opposed outsourcing and privatization of government services. The following article describes the end of a successful outsourcing project at the IRS.

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/I/IRS_DEBT_COLLECTORS?SITE=WIJAN&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

I find the following two paragraphs in the above article are most interesting:

“The program brought in more money than it cost to operate, but it had become a political headache for the IRS.”

“At the IRS, Schulman said he expects to hire more than 1,000 workers this year to increase collections. He encouraged workers from private collection agencies to apply.”

A Presidential Memorandum was issued on 3/4/09 tilted: “Memorandum for the Heads of Executive Departments and Agencies, Subject: Government Contracting”

http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/Memorandum-for-the-Heads-of-Executive-Departments-and-Agencies-Subject-Government-Contracting/

There are many sections of this memorandum that on face value would appear to be good policy that will save tax dollars. However the real intent of this memorandum is contained in the following section:

“However, the line between inherently governmental activities that should not be outsourced and commercial activities that may be subject to private sector competition has been blurred and inadequately defined. As a result, contractors may be performing inherently governmental functions. Agencies and departments must operate under clear rules prescribing when outsourcing is and is not appropriate.”

This memorandum will bring about the end of privatization and is a huge victory for organized labor.