Labour Day Thoughts : Guideposts for the New Chapter of Globalization
3M Questions : Money, Morality, Manifesto
In recent times and especially since the global tariffs war instigated by Washington, (social) media has regularly shown two sides of China’s manufacturing landscape. On one hand, there are videos of skilled Chinese artisans in workshops crafting high-end fashion, leather goods, and luxury products for well-known Western brands — peeling back the curtain on global supply chains and revealing some uncomfortable truths. On the other hand, we see “dark factories”: fully automated, robot-run production lines churning out TVs, kitchen appliances, electric vehicles, and tons of other appliances, often with just a handful of workers managing the whole production from their office desks in front of huge screens — their labour now digital and software-based.
Labour Day began in the late 19th century to honour and recognize the achievements and rights of workers.
In the era of globalization — notably since the 1970s and 80s — labour has steadily shifted from the developed economies of the Global North to the developing nations of the Global South. China, in particular, became a major hub, absorbing a large chunk of the developed Transatlantic economic alliance cheap manufacturing demand. The usual accusations since the beginning of this century — theft, copycatting — don’t tell the accurate story. In reality, developed economies were eager to offshore production for cheap labour (often under conditions banned in the West), transfer technology, and shift pollution to the Global South in exchange for higher and faster returns. Meanwhile, the developing world climbed the value chain to more manufacturing capacity and capability.
For a time, it looked like a mutual benefit, a win-win: corporations in the Global North saw fast-rising profit margins, while China and others gradually transitioned from rural to industrial economies.
So where did it go wrong, ending up in tariffs wars and rapidly increasing geopolitical tensions in recent times ?
3M questions — the ones we need to ask to understand the era of 1970–2020 globalization followed by the fragile and stormy circumstances today :
Money - Where did the wealth generated over five decades actually go in respective societies in the Global North and South ? Who and what in each society benefited from globalization ?
Morality - What beliefs and assumptions did each side make about the other’s capacity for development in economic, societal and social advancements — and especially about their own? How much was shaped by culture, ideology, or historical legacy ? And how much about learning from one another ?
Manifesto - What were the strategic visions and aspirations of the respective governance in the Global North and South, both domestic and global, guiding developments of economy, society, and security over these decades ? What manifesto underpinned the policies of governance ?
These aren’t just retrospective questions — they’re complex and reflective guideposts for the new chapter of globalization, definitely not binary questions with zero-sum answers. Despite what some media or political voices claim, globalization is not over, it is evolving in a multipolar era— and it might just become more inclusive, fair, and resilient than before.
Especially for workers around the world.
May 3, 2025
Gordon Dumoulin