A High-Tech Worker's Guide to Globalization's Myths

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What do you think of this article?

Do you think IT workers with AS would benefit from an IT trade association that opposes globalisation and outsourcing?

http://www.dissidentcongress.com/index. ... myths.html

Trade associations (or unions) would be fine if they were to be used for their intended purpose, to allow the workers to collectively fight for their rights. However, most trade associations these days seem to be money making operations in their own right and do not care about the worker.

I also cannot see aspies being part of an organization because they tend to follow around as a group and aspies tend to go their own way.

At this point, I think trade associations would not help because the larger companies would simply speed up the movement of workers from the USA. If you really want to make a difference, refuse to work for large companies (which tend to follow cliques anyways) and either work for yourself or for a small company.

I think an effectively run trade association will provide a collective voice and force for IT workers. A classic tactic used by oppressive forces is divide and conquer. At the moment (in the UK at least) the IT community is badly fragmented with no significant associations or unions (divide) which makes it so easy for corporate bosses to do as they please (conquer).

One of the strategies of an IT trade association will be to lobby the government to implement measure to make offshoring of IT work more difficult and costly for corporate bosses. Offshoring work has been enabled not just by advances in technology such as the internet and satellites, but by the legal and taxation system. This is the bit that can be changed.

I disagree with you that people with AS would not want to join an IT trade association. If it were run like the old fashioned unions for blue collar and public sector workers then it would be unattractive. If it held a very positive view of people with AS, and more importantly, had senior members with AS then it could be quite attractive. The IT industry in the UK holds quite a negative view of disabled people and there are few organisations at the moment trying to get more disabled people into the industry and challenge prejudices of bosses and interviewers.