I appreciate the discussion as well. I like sharing and debating differing viewpoints. I think my general feeling is that when a CEO is running a for-profit business, it is his responsibility to the company and shareholders to drive revenue and increase profits. Part of that might include laying people off when times are tough. This is the reality of small business owners and large corporations.
As far as employee owned companies, I agree that those can be very valuable. I don't think it makes sense for all companies, but I applaud the ones who have been successful with that model. WinCo Foods is a great example of that. My only concern with employee owned companies is that it can increase the employees' financial risk if the company does poorly. Many workers are not aware that they need to diversify their stock ownership to protect themselves. Employee stock ownership plans are great when the company does well. But if it goes bankrupt, so do they...
I'm all for the rights of workers. They are entitled to a fair wage, reasonable working hours, safety, etc. Many corporations offer benefits plans which include medical, dental, time off, etc. These are bonuses and not required for any employee. I think workers today think they are entitled to much more than they actually are. Everybody can always be fired from their job.