Jeffrey Immelt, the jobs czar from hell

[n2doc]

DEBRA J. SAUNDERS
Tuesday, April 5, 2011

The New York Times reported last month that General Electric earned $14.2 billion in international profits, including, $5.1 billion in the United States. Yet GE did not pay a dime in federal income taxes last year. Oddly, President Obama chose GE Chairman and Chief Executive Jeffrey Immelt to head his President's Council on Jobs and Competitiveness.

According to the Associated Press, Immelt's compensation package doubled to $15.2 million last year, while this year GE is seeking major concessions from the unions that represent its shrinking American workforce. That makes Immelt the wrong guy for the job of jobs czar.

Or as former Democratic Sen. Russ Feingold wrote, "Someone like Immelt, who has helped his company evade taxes on its huge profits - and is now looking to workers to take major pay cuts after his compensation was doubled - should not lead the administration's effort to create jobs."

No lie.

After all, what kind of economic advice can Immelt give?



Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/04/04/EDAD1IPMPN.DTL