Special Report

The restructuring of GM has cost 27,000 jobs in the United States, reducing its total U.S. workforce to 62,000. (Thirty years ago the company employed over 466,000 in the U.S.)  An additional 15 plants will be closed. GM is also shutting plants in Canada. As part of a deal negotiated with the United Auto Workers, workers who retain their jobs will have their wages frozen. A no-strike pledge until 2015 was agreed by the UAW. How do you assess the restructuring plan? And what is the response of rank and file unionists to the plan and to UAW’s concession? If there is division of opinions among them, what is the debate about?

丁聲鎭是南韓慶尙大學左翼經濟學家，他最近對馬克思主義經濟史學家羅伯特•布倫納所作的訪問，在幾個左翼中文網站都有轉載。丁聲鎭最近又在英國左翼雜誌《國際社會主義》（International Socialism）發表一篇針對阿銳基的（Giovanni Arrighi）新書《阿當斯密在北京》 (Adam Smith in Beijing)的書評

「中國製造」的神話從鞋業、電子產品到廚房電器，到處都會貼著「中國製造」的標籤，它已成為時代的象徵。過去10年間，美國每年從中國的商品進口量由約810億美元增長到去年的3380億美元。給人的感覺，好像所有產品都是來自「中央王國」。可事實表明，近來有關「中國製造」的說法有些不妥。在過去20年間，產品供應鏈已經分佈全球各地，幾乎沒有某一個商品是在某一個國家製造。

文/區龍宇 （本文原為英文，發表於今年夏季號的美國雜誌《新政治》（New Politics）。目前暫無中文版，特作如下簡介。英文版的連結請按此）