Reaction to Amish roofing story

This Inquirer article, by Harold Brubaker, regarding non-Amish contractors’ complaints about unfair competition from Amish roofers, stood out to me.

Mild animosity against the Amish because of a perceived tax or business advantage they get from the government is nothing new. Snarky Amish supporters have long enjoyed poking fun at people who whine that “the Amish don’t pay taxes for roads, and their buggies cause more damage than vehicles.” (There are no taxes specifically for roads, so no one pays “road taxes.” The Amish do pay general local, state and federal taxes, the first two of which usually pay for roads.)

My father has mentioned before that at some point, probably when the economy gets bad, this kind of rhetoric is going to become more widespread, and will have stronger evidence to support it. I.e., the Inqy article.

A couple observations off the top:

A lot of the comments (but not all) cheer on the Amish, seeing the disagreement as a fight between “union thugs” and hardworking plain workers. I don’t think this is entirely accurate, as I’m not sure how many of these Main Line roofing firms are actually unionized. My guess is not many.

Second, the two Amish advantages the non-Amish contractors point out are the lack of Social Security and worker’s compensation payments from the Amish. As the article states, the worker’s comp payments are most likely not giving anyone a competitive advantage.

Social Security is another issue, and one where the non-Amish have a stronger case. However, I still don’t think it’s going to gain a lot of traction, especially if the general public, correctly or not, associates those complaining with unions, which aren’t exactly popular.

First, Amish supporters could point out that, while the Amish do not usually contribute to Social Security (they see it as a form of insurance), they do their own form of localized aid, paying for medical bills of Amish church members. So while one particular owner might not be contributing that much, an Amish-owned company employing Amish workers could argue that they spend more on the community than non-Amish companies, which in the end evens out the Social Security advantage.

The most effective reaction to the non-Amish complaints is the one that the Amish roofers have been using: that the Amish simply work faster and better.

This is damaging to the non-Amish argument because the public generally sees the Amish as hardworking, quality craftsmen. Also, it inadvertently plays into the stereotype that the non-Amish companies are possibly unionized, Philly fat cats with a sense of entitlement. Third, those who hire the Amish companies generally agree, as the Inqy article shows. Two homeowners both credit quality more than price when they were asked why they went with the Amish.

Even the non-Amish contractors seem to play into this a little. See the following quote from the Inqy:

“They don’t work faster,” he said, suggesting that a lower cost of living in the Amish community – no cable bills, for example – was a big factor. “They don’t have a lifestyle. They just work.”

In two consecutive thoughts, he denies the Amish work faster and then proceeds to suggest that they do, because they don’t have a “lifestyle,” and just work all the time. In other words, they can work faster, no?

Non-Amish contractors will probably continue to have a problem with the Amish exemptions, and that could cause problems for the Amish if those contractors have friends in high places. But it’s hard to see how the public, which seems to associate the non-Amish with unions anyway, is going to be upset about what they see as lower priced, higher quality contractors moving in on Main Line business.