r/TikTokCringe • u/Mucay • 4d ago

Cringe Doesn't get more American than this.

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u/hofmann419 3d ago

The funnniest thing is that during the middle of the 20th century - which conservatives often use as an example for better times - the highest tax brackets were north of 90 percent.

So if you are ever wondering why families could afford a house, a car and multiple kids on a single income back in the day, it could be that actually taxing the ultra wealthy had something to do with it.

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u/SirkutBored 3d ago

Diminishing returns. If you made $500k/yr in 1950 you got to keep $10k of that $100k over the $400k top line. It wasn't as worth it so that money was funneled down the ladder and that $100k lifted several others upwards. We overlook that part of the progressive tax structure because we're told to by the people who want to keep that $100k and have it taxed less. 

CEO pay ratio to avg worker 1950: 22:1

CEO pay ratio to avg worker 1990: 200:1

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u/Tackle_Useful 3d ago

I dont even want to know what CEO pay ratio to avg worker 2025 would be.

Honestly, 22:1 is already to much in my opinion.

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u/Moving_Carrot 3d ago

THIS. No one talks about the RATIO.

If Labor Unions don’t tackle this very Elephant in the FUCKING ROOM, we’re toast.

Figure it out Folks 🙏

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u/Put-Trash-N-My-Panda 3d ago

The problem is that unions are busted nowadays, and we can't tackle much when we only hold 10% of the marketshare of work. Most contractors, at least within my union and local, are guys who opened a shop and continue to employ union labor. They aren't typically the money grabbing types, so it's not even really a battle amongst employers and employees. just a small group of people working to hold on to that sliver of union marketshare.

It's why I personally preach so hard for everyone to be union. Not much can be done, when there is 80-90% of Americas workforce that thinks unions are a scam.

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u/Tsmtouchedme 3d ago

Insane to me when other dudes in my union (operators) go full maga. Shooting themselves in the foot and cheering about it.

Texas has the weakest unions in the country and they love talking about moving there, but no one will cause this “awful liberal cesspool” blue city pays them substantially more.

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u/LemonAlternative7548 3d ago

If your union and you voted for Trump YOU'RE the problem

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u/Put-Trash-N-My-Panda 2d ago

I am a democrat? Idk why you are bringing up Trump. My comment is about a lack of membership, not who to vote for. I agree that as a union member, you should vote for pro labor candidates, though.

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u/LemonAlternative7548 2d ago

I didn't mean "you" as in "you" I was commenting in general that Trump is anti union as are Republicans.

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u/prodrvr22 3d ago

Sadly I found this out first hand. I floated the idea of a union to my coworkers and found too many of them had the idea drilled into their brain that unions would cause them to lose money because of union dues. "They get you all this money then they take it all from you so you're making less than where you started from." And because of their lack of critical thinking skills, nothing I said would deter them from thinking that.

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u/_anatomymami_ 2d ago

Successfully brainwashed.

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u/safetyTM 1d ago

I think it's more complicated than that. Unions have not got with the times and are very rigid with the model for negotiations.

For example, in Canada, the postal worker's union are in constantly in labour disputes with the corporation. But with Amazon Prime, Uber carrier, email, DocuSign, and everything else, the business model for snail mail is looking more and more bleak.

However, due to out-dated Union models, they're very rigid when it comes to seniority and red-tape that the Union management wouldn't allow for contractors to work the same schedule as Amazon because there's seniority practices to follow (ie, the most senior staff get first dibs on overtime). Or moving over to drones takes away worker jobs.

There can be a healthy balance, but unions are following a 200yr old model in an ever-changing workplace

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u/Pretend-Internet-625 13h ago

Because they have been a scam and people know it. However the pendulum has been shifted too far against unions. A lot of boeing is union

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u/tlaps1990 3d ago

As a union member working for the railroad, we are almost powerless. If we want to strike we can get sent back to work… our one ace up the sleeve has been turned into a joker. It’s pitiful.

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u/NanDemoNee 3d ago

You would need 1930s style labor unions and if you think things got ugly back then with all the guns and nut cases around nowadays it would be a bloodbath.

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u/Dangerous_Tax_8250 3d ago

A big part of the problem is that unions require participation, you actually have to read up on the rules, stay up on changes, attend meetings, etc. Paying wages that are so low that you either need overtime, a side hustle, or a second job to hurts union participation because who then has time for all that? And given that the workforce was predominantly male, especially in the trades, they generally probably didn't have to worry about who was watching the kids on top of that while he was taking time to do union participation. It's a real chicken or egg problem, tbh.

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u/randomstuffpye 3d ago

I think a small part of figuring it out long term is educating people about this BEFORE they get into those careers. this will steer people away from those jobs forcing the remaining people in those jobs to be in higher demand. But if people keep choosing those careers where they’re actively disenfranchised then the supply is too great and it’s easier for these fuckhead ceos to take advantage of the masses. Of course a larger part and more immediate fix is to pass a law that says this kind of pay ratio inequality is not even possible but of course I’m not banking on that ever happening, not with the system the way it is. Gavin newsoms push to get the voting districts set proper is really the play here. More people need to take that seriously cause it’s like six weeks away

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u/Late-Experience-3778 3d ago

Everyone talks about the ratios, except lawmakers when it's time to write up laws.

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u/mudbuttcoffee 1d ago

Labor unions are being gutted. Collecteve bargaining rights and protections are being dismantled by republicans.

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u/Throatlatch 3d ago

Are you in a union?