Industrial peace at a price

Monday, Feb 25, 2013, will be remembered as a sad day for economic Ireland.

Industrial peace may be secured for a number of years which is welcome, but the Croke Park negotiations are the most definite indicator yet that neither Government, politicians, economists, advisors nor union officials understand what causes economic chaos in the 21st century.

The age we now live in is defined by technology. The world can produce goods and services to a level never before imagined possible even in relatively recent times. The level of longevity, health, freedom from pain, sustenance, housing, comfort, choice, communications, entertainment, travel and abundance of everything that should make living and lifestyle light years better than anything ever experienced before is undeniable. Such a level of affluence is entirely attributable to the extraordinary advance of technology since the introduction of computerisation. Yet there is apparently no understanding of the implications of such technological advance or how it has transformed economic activity to its very core.