Introducing The Public Industry Administration Model (PIAM): EFI’s Union-Led Economic System
A New Model for Worker Governance
The Equitable Future Initiative (EFI) envisions an economy where workers, not corporations, control industries through structured union governance. This is achieved through The Public Industry Administration Model (PIAM)—a system that replaces corporate-driven decision-making with union-led industry management, workforce coordination, and public economic planning.
Under PIAM, unions evolve from bargaining organizations into structured industry regulators, ensuring fair wages, sustainable automation, and labor-driven governance. This blog explores how PIAM works, how it redistributes economic power, and why it offers a practical alternative to corporate capitalism.
PIAM is a structured union-based governance model that replaces corporate hierarchies with worker-led decision-making at three levels:
Industry Unions (Sectoral Guilds) - Represent entire industries, setting wages, work conditions, and automation policies. Example: The National Healthcare Workers Union ensures fair pay, safe staffing levels, and responsible AI integration across all hospitals.
Regional Labor Councils (Local Governance Units) - Assign workers to jobs, manage local employment, and oversee public projects. Example: The San Diego Construction Labor Council assigns workers to public housing projects at fair wages, ensuring equitable workloads.
The Council of Commons (National Administration Body) - Oversees long-term economic planning, automation governance, and cross-industry regulations. Example: The Council of Commons votes to implement a nationwide 30-hour workweek, redistributing labor instead of allowing automation to displace workers.
3 Levels of Union-Based Governance Model
How PIAM Works in Action
Let’s take a deeper look at each level of PIAM governance and how it would function in practice.
1. Industry Unions: Regulating National Industry Standards
At the highest level, unions oversee entire industries to ensure fair pay, safe working conditions, and responsible automation policies.
Example: National Healthcare Workers Union
Today, private hospitals prioritize profit over patient care, leading to underpaid nurses, overworked doctors, and inadequate staffing. Under PIAM, the National Healthcare Workers Union ensures that:
✅ All healthcare workers earn a standardized, livable wage, eliminating exploitative pay disparities.
✅ Safe staffing levels prevent burnout and ensure high-quality patient care.
✅ Automation is introduced responsibly, retraining workers instead of replacing them.
For instance, if an AI-driven diagnostic system is introduced, the union must approve its deployment. Instead of mass layoffs, the system is integrated only if affected workers are retrained for new roles in AI-assisted healthcare.
By eliminating corporate decision-making, industry unions ensure that automation benefits workers rather than displacing them.
2. Regional Labor Councils: Managing Local Workforce Needs
At the regional level, labor councils assign workers to projects, balance workloads, and coordinate local employment.
Example: San Diego Construction Labor Council
A city like San Diego faces a housing crisis because private developers prioritize profit over affordability. Under PIAM, the San Diego Construction Labor Council ensures that:
✅ Unionized builders are assigned to public housing projects, ensuring steady employment.
✅ Workers receive fair wages instead of being exploited by corporate developers.
✅ Housing is built at cost, not for profit, ensuring affordability for all residents.
Once completed, these homes transition to public ownership or housing cooperatives, preventing landlords from profiting off artificially high rents.
3. The Council of Commons: National Economic Decision-Making
At the highest policy level, The Council of Commons sets national labor policies, oversees automation governance, and ensures long-term economic stability.
Example: Implementing a Nationwide 30-Hour Workweek
Automation in manufacturing has increased productivity by 200%. In today’s economy, corporations would lay off workers while CEOs hoard the profits. Under PIAM, the Council of Commons steps in to:
✅ Mandate a nationwide 30-hour workweek, ensuring automation reduces work hours instead of eliminating jobs.
✅ Redistribute labor across industries, allowing displaced workers to transition into new fields with retraining.
✅ Use automation-driven profits to fund Universal Basic Income (UBI), ensuring economic security.
This prevents mass layoffs and ensures that technological progress benefits everyone instead of enriching a few.
Key Benefits of The Public Industry Administration Model (PIAM)
✅ Eliminates Corporate Exploitation – No more billionaires profiting off worker exploitation.
✅ Prevents Job Loss from AI & Automation – All automation decisions must benefit workers.
✅ Guarantees Fair Wages & Work Conditions – Industry-wide unions enforce fair pay.
✅ Ensures Public Services Operate for People, Not Profit – No more privatized healthcare, housing, or policing.
✅ Creates a Balanced Work-Life Model – Reduces unnecessary work while maintaining wages and quality of life.
Challenges and How PIAM Overcomes Them
Transitioning to PIAM will face resistance from corporate and political elites. Here’s how PIAM overcomes key challenges:
Challenges
Corporate Resistance: Large companies will fight against losing control over industries.
Bureaucracy in Large Unions: Some unions may resist change or become slow-moving bureaucracies.
Scaling Beyond Traditional Unionized Sectors: Gig workers, freelancers, and independent contractors lack traditional union protections.
Legal Barriers in Current Labor Laws: Many existing laws restrict union economic control.
PIAM Solutions
Public Advocacy & Legal Reforms – Union-backed policies and worker-driven activism drive legislative change.
Direct Worker Participation – PIAM ensures decision-making remains democratic through voting and rotating leadership.
Universal Industry Unions – PIAM expands unions to cover all sectors, including independent workers and the self-employed.
Legislative Action & Public Pressure – PIAM-backed policies push for pro-worker legal reforms.
A Structured Alternative to Corporate Capitalism
The Public Industry Administration Model (PIAM) transforms unions into the governing bodies of industry, eliminating the need for corporate hierarchies. Under EFI’s vision, unions:
✅ Manage industries through democratic worker governance.
✅ Oversee automation and AI to prevent mass job displacement.
✅ Ensure fair labor distribution through regional councils.
✅ Set national policies that prioritize worker well-being over corporate profit.
This is more than labor reform—it’s a structured alternative to corporate capitalism, ensuring that automation, labor, and economic progress benefit everyone, not just the wealthy elite.
Join Us
How do you see unions playing a role in shaping a better economy? What concerns or ideas do you have about PIAM’s governance model?
Let’s build the future—together.
