MCGEO has done quite a number on county residents. When discussing the hot issue of privatization of Montgomery County\u2019s liquor monopoly, politicians automatically express concern about the potential loss of those \u201cgood union jobs.\u201d<\/p>\n
People would be a lot less sympathetic to the idea of protecting liquor store or distributor employees. Why on earth should we maintain an antiquated, inefficient monopoly to protect their jobs but not spend money to protect the grocery store cashier or bank teller threatened by automation?<\/p>\n
What makes all the angst about losing \u201cgood union jobs\u201d even more galling is that private liquor distributors are unionized by the Teamsters<\/a> \u2013 a little fact that never seems to get mentioned in all the handwringing.<\/p>\n Privatization doesn\u2019t threaten union jobs. It threatens union jobs that pay dues to MCGEO<\/em>. So MCGEO President Gino Renne, who was paid $196,700 by his local union and an additional $20,000 by his international union last year, is naturally quite concerned. As Gino likes to say, \u201cJust keeping it real.\u201d<\/p>\n Sadly, no one seems concerned about all these Teamsters Union jobs lost due to the monopoly depriving them of a livelihood. Not to mention the restaurant jobs lost because of extra costs that make it harder to turn a profit and frustration with the Department of Liquor Control that stops businesses from opening or expanding in Montgomery.<\/p>\n The other unasked question is why does the DLC perform so poorly if these jobs are so great? Service at DLC stores is variable at best and most employees are unfamiliar with their product. Beyond the stories about the DLC failing to deliver product at key moments, such as right before<\/a> New Year\u2019s<\/a>, I\u2019ve also heard about the DLC dumping shipments in the middle of the bar during happy hour.<\/p>\n It\u2019s almost as if Ernestine left the phone company<\/a> once Ma Bell was broken up and sought refuge at the DLC. \u201cWe\u2019re the DLC, we don\u2019t have to care.\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s not as if the DLC is understaffed. Somehow, Montgomery County-based Total Wine manages to keep in stock and much better organized a far greater range of product. They do it with fewer employees who yet also seem to know about the product that they\u2019re selling and are more likely in my experience to provide good customer service. Other stores do the same.<\/p>\n Similarly, I\u2019d like to know the share of DLC workers who live in Montgomery County. While some might argue that this is irrelevant, why must Montgomery County citizens keep in place a costly system to subsidize workers who don\u2019t even live here? Even this question has totally lost the plot as government should not be a make-work program but should provide services to residents.<\/p>\n Councilmembers defend the DLC because it brings in money to the county. It would be a miracle if a monopoly on booze in the DC area did not. The sad truth is that it brings in far less than it might. The amount of beer and spirits sold per capita in Montgomery is lower than almost all other jurisdictions in Maryland<\/a> as well as the Virginia suburbs. Does anyone seriously believe that we drink phenomenally less than people in Fairfax? Greater efficiency would also increase profit. Couldn\u2019t we just tax alcohol and try to grow the economic pie instead of clinging desperately on to a stagnant unloved system?<\/p>\n None of this means that we shouldn\u2019t pay county employees decent wages or we should just chuck the DLC workers out of a job. But nor should taxpayers be obligated to maintain a system that doesn\u2019t work and myopically hurts the economy in perpetuity.<\/p>\n It\u2019s time to call the question and end this outdated monopoly.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" MCGEO has done quite a number on county residents. When discussing the hot issue of privatization of Montgomery County\u2019s liquor monopoly, politicians automatically express concern about the potential loss of those \u201cgood union jobs.\u201d People would be a lot less sympathetic to the idea of protecting liquor store or distributor employees. Why on earth should … Continue reading On \u201cThose Good Union Jobs\u201d at the Department of Liquor Control<\/span>