Elie Goldman Smith: “Worker’s rights need to be addressed.  How can workplace health and safety standards work without government intervention?  Maybe third-party organizations like the ISO could be involved?  But would that be good enough?  How about building codes or food safety?  How would it work?” – Good questions.

 Organizations such as the ISO as long as they do not receive any government subsidies (I don’t think the ISO does) are a good idea.           

     Workplace Health and Safety:  Decent businessmen like decent people everywhere do not want to see anyone get hurt.  But businessmen have an extra incentive – they want to make a profit.  Employers do not make extra profits by letting their employees get hurt.  If the boss doesn’t seem to care, you can quit, you can enlighten him, you and your fellow employees can form a union to get his attention, you can sue.  Currently, workers are covered by the government run WSIB.  Employers are forced to pay into the WSIB and employees have little choice but to put themselves at the mercy of the WSIB.  And because the WSIB has unfunded liabilities, as virtually all government run programs do, they are incentivized to decline legitimate claims.  We do not need the WSIB.  Employers and employees can purchase insurance from private companies – I have never had an inspector from the WSIB but when I purchase private insurance, they show up no problem.   

     Building Codes:  There is nothing in human nature to say that building inspectors enforcing building codes are any more honest than the rest of us.  In my opinion, they are susceptible to bribes because they hold the power of the gun – what’s the saying:  absolute power corrupts absolutely.  But bribery is only the tip of the iceberg.  The net effect of building codes is to take builders of the hook; if there’s any problem the builder can show that everything was built to code.  There is little incentive to build a brand.  Without building codes, a builder would have to stand or fall on his reputation, on his brand.            

     Food Safety:  You are protected now – by branding.  McDonalds spends millions to promote and protect their brand.  The suppliers to McDonalds don’t give a damn about government inspectors; they stand at attention when a McDonalds inspector walks in.  If it ever became known that McDonalds made no effort to keep botulism out of their food, they would go out of business worldwide within a matter of hours.  

     It is not the job of the government to forcibly insert themselves between employers and employees – because they suck at it and most importantly, IT IS NONE OF THEIR BUSINESS!