Globalization is the process of world transformation into a unified system. At the end of the last century, this phenomenon has become one of the most discussed topics, and debates continue and increase. This is th most appropriate topic from the best english essay topics list. Globalization concerns the processes of economic, cultural, political and religious development. However, the most influential is the globalization of the economy. The paper discusses the pros and cons of globalization, the problem of hiring low-wage labor in Third World countries and the relevance of social justice for international trade and the behavior of state leaders.
The world economic globalization includes combining the world into a unified zone with the unlimited movement of information resources, capital, labor, products, services and goods, free ideas expression and stronger relations between social institutions around the world. Among the pros of globalization are the following points. The process creates an international competition, which, in turn, stimulates production causing severe competition. In fact, every manufacturer competes to get the leading place on the international trade market; so the producers try to do everything to make their goods more attractive than the ones of the competitor. As Steger puts it, developing countries have a chance to build their production power with the help of financing of highly developed states as a part of the globalization. Besides, the process provokes industrial-scale savings that contribute to avoiding jumps in the economy and lead to lower prices. International trade is beneficial to all participants in market relations. The next advantage of globalization includes the introduction of modern technology that improves performance significantly.
However, as every process conducted by humanity, globalization has a list of negative features. Among them is the fact that the phenomenon’s benefits distribute across the globe not evenly. Some sectors of the international industry build their profit, use intellectual power from abroad, get additional investments, while others become unnecessary and cannot compete. Forgotten industries need time and money to reconstruct and adjust their production to the new conditions. Many companies fail to do that. Consequently, their owners lose money and people become jobless. These changes greatly affect the national economy of each country leading to the growth of unemployment. The process of de-industrialization of the economy takes place. The manufacturing sector loses ground while the service industry occupies the leading place. Many unemployed workers have to change their specialization in order to find a job and feed their families.
Among other cons of globalization, there are the following results of the competition. Large gap forms between skilled and unskilled workers. While the salary of professional laborers rises, the latter get low salaries and even lose their jobs. Thus, globalization causes unemployment. However, some people can choose an option of additional training and obtaining a qualification, which is an element of development. Most of the opponents of globalization mention that the leading negative effect is that globalization has a significant impact on the ecosystem of the world. The use of natural resources rises causing a lot of arguments and discussions all over the world. A number of conflicts appear due to the problem of oceans and seas pollution, deforestation and the irrational use of the Earth resources. The abovementioned factors cause irreparable harm to humanity and the planet in general.
The process of globalization created multinational corporations that impose a model of transnationalized development in Third World countries. Their main aim is to transform these states into leading exporters of industrial products to the world market. However, an industry that is founded on this basis in developing countries is far from meeting the main requirements of genuine economic development. In fact, it meets the needs of transnational corporations, which always invest in those industries and states that provide the greatest profitability and safety. The politics and actions of the investors lead to the isolation of the host country’s economy since their activity depends mainly on imported resources, investments and the subsequent export of products within the TNC markets. This situation is contrary to the definition of development based on the integration of the national economy.
At the same time, activities of transnational corporations increase the level of employment, and hence the income of the population, but their main aim is to use cheap labor as much as possible to raise the profitability. Hence, the inevitable increase of employment happens due to foreign capital. This process is extremely limited, as the expansion of production only slightly contributes to the creation of new jobs in other industries because of weak coupling of multinational companies with other branches of the national economy. Thus, such activities cannot be a sign of independent economic development. Super-exploitation of labor is exacerbated by the absolute increase in the working week in the Third World countries, the duration of which, according to numerous sources, ranges from 48 to 52 hours with a minimum of 50 working weeks per year. Neglecting conditions of safety and social security along with reduced labor law and the suppression of trade unions mean ruthless usage of the low-wage labor. According to Leary & Warner, another major component of the ideology of transnational companies is the idea that developing countries can gain many benefits from the use of technology. In fact, in most cases, the dominant position of TNCs bases on certain scientific and technical knowledge they do not pass and do not intend to transfer to developing states.
This knowledge would never meet the national needs of the backward countries and is aimed to ensure the profits of transnational corporations. Therefore, they are contrary to the needs of national economic development. The abovementioned factors mean that the low-wage labor of people who live in the Third World countries is used by multinational corporations for their profit. The developing states do not have any development, their own manufacturing industries close up and the unemployment rates grow. Such politics of the leading countries ruins the principles of social justice and leads to more significant inequality between the developing and underdeveloped nations.
The poorest countries and civilizations have severe technological backwardness, very low share in global exports of high-tech products and income from the sale of technology. High levels of social stratification within such states are characterized by a handful of the richest and the majority of those who are in poverty and despair. Although these countries have the bulk of the natural resources, rental income from their use goes to the rich nations and a small group of oil barons, compradors and the corrupt ruling elite in these states.
At the same time, almost a quarter of the world’s population still has no access to electricity and other benefits of a contemporary society. Moreover, millions of people die every year from hunger. Such procedure of wealth distribution is unjust and causes indignation of millions of families who are unable to secure at least the minimum conditions of life and development. This polarization is more dangerous for the present and the future of the world economy, because the concentration of social injustice in the poorest civilizations enhances the threat and manifestations of civilizational conflict and terrorism. The UN has tried to respond to this challenge and formulated an ambitious program to reduce the gap between rich and poor countries. However, this initiative runs very poorly, since the UN has neither the means nor the political instruments to achieve the set goals. Extended global program of sustainable development remains largely the list of good wishes.
Real world economic policy, World Trade Organization (WTO) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) promote mainly the interests of transnational corporations and the richest countries. Moreover, they also implement international economic regulatory measures to meet these interests and cause growing resentment of the majority of the poorest states with the growing losses from the rules established in the global market games. Thus, international trade, politics and development do not follow the principle of social justice, using their power for enhancing the profit of the rich countries. Social justice does not have power for the international trade as every powerful nation aims at building strong economy despite the interests of other countries.
Discussing the role of social justice on the level of state and its importance for countries’ leaders, it is important to mention that the task of the state and society is to increase justice in social relations. To act justly means to act lawfully, respecting universal and equal rights. Social justice is the key to stability of social structure, and achieving justice is the most important aim of social progress. State leaders should consider developing of social justice for the population of their countries and implement laws and requirements that bring the country politics to this result. Fair social policy is the foundation of social cohesion and solidarity of society. Social justice is an equal chance of starting life with equal access to education, work, culture, health care and housing. This includes equal right to social security for the aged people and guaranteeing economic support for those who are not able to work. It is equally respectful attitude to all people, regardless of their social origin, wealth, ethnicity, religion and beliefs.
The idea of achieving equity must become one of the foundations for further development of human society. In fact, without social justice, there is no lasting peace or security, no social development, no individual freedom, human dignity or an acceptable quality of life for all people. At the same time, state leaders perform not only politics within their own country, but they have to act on the international level. This is the moment when social justice refers only to their actions aimed at the prosperity of their own nation, and they are not afraid to make decisions that would lead to collapse of other states’ economies and development.
In conclusion, globalization as an international and worldwide process affects the global economy and concerns every country. It unites the whole world with all its advantages and disadvantages. The main moving power of globalization is the competition of companies in the world market. The most competitive and leading businesses have a chance to stay on the world stage as globalization concerns all production spheres. The main negative effect of globalization is that underdeveloped countries that have a low levels of economy and extremely high levels of poverty do not have a chance for a brighter future. They suffer the most and their level of development goes backward. The main advantage is the equal development and economic growth of all countries in the world. The most evident side effect of globalization is the use of low-wage labor of the Third World countries that causes poverty and stagnation in the developing states. The principle of social justice is not common for the politics of the highly developed countries concerning the developing ones. Although social justice is the leading aim of state leaders within their own nation, they do not follow this principle performing international politics despite they should.