Money and Wealth (Part 5) - Unions, Inheritance

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Money and Wealth (Part 5) - Unions, Inheritance, Lottery, Begging, Theft A. Unions i. When the topic of unions comes up, always remember that the employer is the master and the employees are the servants. (i) Workers have a right to request higher wages and better working conditions. (ii) Employers have a right to grant or deny those requests. (iii)If a worker doesn’t like his wage, benefits, or working conditions, he can quit. (iv) Workers have a right to collectively ask for higher wages, etc. (v) Employers have a right to deny such requests. (vi) Workers only have a right to form a union to bargain for better pay, etc. only if the employer grants them that right. (vii) If the employer doesn’t want his workers to unionize, he has the right to fire any who try to do so. ii. Unions, unless allowed by the employer, are wrong. (i) Servants have no right to create an organization that operates within a company without the owner’s approval. (ii) Servants have no right to demand concessions from their master. (iii)An employer has the right to do whatever he wants with his own company and pay his workers whatever he has agreed to pay them (Mat 20:15). iii. Unions are unnecessary. (i) The free market will raise wages to a fair rate when employers and employees are able to freely negotiate wages. (ii) If an employer is offering too low of wages, his employees will go to a competitor who is offering higher wages which will force him to increase his wages or go out of business. iv. Unions are harmful. (i) Unions oftentimes seek to increase wages above the market rate, which will cause companies to become unprofitable and go out of business. (ii) They also disincentivize hard work and diligence because all workers get raises, regardless of performance. (iii)They protect lazy people from being fired. 2. Receiving an inheritance A. Another way to acquire money and wealth is by inheriting it. B. This is an inferior way to build wealth because something that is not worked for is usually not appreciated or managed well. i. “Note that in eight of the ten occupational categories, gift receivers have smaller levels of net worth (wealth) than those who do not receive gifts.” (emphasis in the original) (Thomas J. Stanley, The Millionaire Next Door, p. 152) ii. “Many of the most highly productive sons and daughters receive no wealth transfers whatsoever. Yet as we have discussed in Chapter 5, that’s one  reason they’re wealthy!” (Thomas J. Stanley, The Millionaire Next Door, p. 176) C. Inheritances often turn out to not be the blessings they at first appear to be (Pro 20:21). i. An inheritance gotten in youth will be squandered by most people (Luk 15:12-14). ii. Many older people quickly spend the inheritance they are given as well. iii. I have witnessed this. iv. Leaving an inheritance or giving financial gifts to children will often make them worse off in the long run. (i) “For example, affluent parents often subsidize their children's purchase of a home. The intent may be to help their children ‘get started on the right foot.’ The parents assume that such gifts are a once-in-a-lifetime phenomenon. Some have told us that they thought ‘this would be the last dollar the kids would ever need.’ They assume that the recipients of their kindness will be able to ‘do it on their own’ in the near future. Nearly half the time, they are wrong. “Gift receivers frequently are underachievers in generating income. All too often the income of the gift receiver does not increase at the same rate as his consumption. Remember, expensive homes are typically located in what we call high-consumption neighborhoods. Living in such neighborhoods requires more than just being able to pay the mortgage. To fit in, one needs to ‘look the part’ in terms of one's clothing, landscaping, home maintenance, automobiles, furnishings, and so on. And don't forget to add high property taxes to all the other items. “Thus, a gift of a down payment, whether full or partial, can place a recipient on a treadmill of consumption and continued dependence on the gift giver. But the majority of these recipients' neighbors, more likely than not, receive no cash gifts from their parents. They are much more content and confident about their lifestyle than most gift receivers are. Many gift receivers in such situations become sensitive to the need for continued economic outpatient care. Their orientation may even dramatically change from a focus on self- generated economic achievement to one of hoping for and contemplating the arrival of additional gifts. Underachieving income producers in such cases find it nearly impossible to accumulate wealth.” (Thomas J. Stanley, The Millionaire Next Door, p. 153) (ii) “The more dollars adult children receive, the fewer dollars they accumulate, while those who are given fewer dollars accumulate more.  “This is a statistically proven relationship. Yet many parents still think that their wealth can automatically transform their children into economically productive adults. They are wrong. Discipline and initiative can’t be purchased like automobiles or clothing off a rack.” (Thomas J. Stanley, The Millionaire Next Door, p. 168) (iii)“Is a rent-free environment ideal for a young entrepreneur? We don’t think so. Nor is the gift of a business. The most successful business owners are the ones who put much of their own resources behind their ventures. Many succeed because they have to succeed. It’s their money, their product, their reputation. They have no safety net. They have no one else to rely upon for their success or failure.” (Thomas J. Stanley, The Millionaire Next Door, p. 168) (iv) If you want to make your broke, big-spending, financially irresponsible, or lazy children better off, give them nothing. (v) Sadly, that is the opposite of what most parents do. (vi) “Often the unemployed have a history of being in and out of work. Others are so-called professional students. Typically, their parents view these children as needing the money more than their brothers and sisters do, now and in the future. Thus, the unemployed are more than twice as likely as their working brothers and sisters to receive inheritances.” (Thomas J. Stanley, The Millionaire Next Door, p. 191) D. Wise men often have a sad reality to face―they spend a lifetime saving and being prudent with their money, only to leave it to children or others who will waste it (Ecc 2:18-21; Psa 39:6). i. Deciding who to leave his wealth to is a very difficult decision for a wise man. ii. I personally would want to leave my wealth to someone who both needs it and will be wise with it. iii. But those two things are usually mutually exclusive because those who need money usually are not wise with it, and those who are wise with it usually don’t need more. iv. Some wise men are inclined to leave their wealth to those who are already well-off―having demonstrated an ability to manage money well―and therefore they know that their hard-earned money will not be wasted (Mat 25:28-29). v. I think this is a wise approach, but one which will make most people angry with you and question your character (Luk 19:24-26). vi. If a wealthy person has adult children or grandchildren that he is considering leaving an inheritance to, consider doing the following.  (i) Give $10,000 to each child or grandchild and tell them it is theirs to do whatever they want with it. Tell them that all you ask is that they let you know in a year what they did with the money. (ii) Those who spent all or most of it on consumer goods (vehicles, toys, furniture, unnecessary home improvements, etc.) or leisure/entertainment (vacations, going out to eat, going to shows, etc.) should receive no inheritance because have proven that they will waste it (Luk 16:10b-12). (iii)Those who save or invest all or most of it are worthy to receive an inheritance because they have shown themselves to be wise, prudent, and responsible with money (Luk 16:10a). E. It takes wisdom for an inheritance to be a blessing instead of a waste (Ecc 7:11). F. The prosperity of fools will destroy them (Pro 1:32), especially when it is unearned prosperity.