zlacker

>>blago+(OP)
Tech companies in general and Amazon specifically seem scared to death of unionization. I think Amazon's actions in this matter are going to backfire tremendously.

>>ipsoca+qv
...and anyone who's had to work with a union can understand why.

>>koheri+mJ
You mean like, most of the companies in Europe?

>>jhaywa+ZJ
Europe, which has a per-capita GDP ~1/3 lower than the US.

>>mroset+9M
This didn't pass the smell test, and sure enough Monaco, Norway, Switzerland, Ireland, Iceland, all have higher per capita GDPs. Denmark, Sweden, Austria, and Finland are in the same ballpark or a little lower. Germany and Belgium are lower, but still above 1/3 lower.

UK and France are ~1/3 lower. Italy and Spain are ~50% lower.

>>Pfhrea+vN
2018 numbers I found[1] show the EU as having ~69% the per-capita GDP of US. That's pretty close to 1/3 less.

1: https://tradingeconomics.com/european-union/gdp-per-capita

>>aidenn+wO
Right, and if the United States merged with a cross section of less developed countries our GDP per capita would look smaller, too.

>>standa+sU
The US isn't homogenous either. DC, Massachusetts, New York, California, Alaska, and Washington have much higher GDPs per capita than other states / provinces.

>>ummonk+a31
The US is a nation state, the European Union is not. Comparing the two should only be done with a truckload of caveats to begin with. If anything, compare the Eurozone to the US.

>>standa+t31
With visa-free travel, common regulations, etc., the European Union is certainly starting to approach the United States (notice the plural in "States"?) in developing a similar federal structure.

>>ummonk+G41
Brexit shows that there's still a major difference: member states can elect to leave. Economic penalties etc follow, and political fallout, but here in the US we fought a major war to demonstrate that states are _not_ allowed to secede from the union. (As much as many blue states might wish they could ...)

>>gknoy+zl1
There are only two states in USA that could secede and not feel crippling economic impact. Texas and California. One Blue, one Red