During the nineties a new culture had developed, one in which firms focused on the bottom line-today's profits, not long-run profits-and took quick and decisive actions when they faced problems. Firms that kept on workers when they were no longer needed were viewed as softhearted and softheaded. "Chain-saw Al" Dunlap, Sunbeam's CEO, who got a reputation for axing workers and cutting costs with a new ruthlessness, may have been an extreme case, but he was emblematic of the new culture. Fire workers as soon as it is clear that you don't need them. You can always hire them back again later. Firm loyalty-either of workers to their firm or the firm to its workers-were values of a bygone era. This meant that employment fell far more quickly as the economy went into the downturn.
( Joseph E. Stiglitz )
[ The Roaring Nineties: A New ]
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