Guild

Guilds are quasi-autonomous government entities which constitute the permanent membership of the Council of Labor. They are organized based on like crafts across different industries, and in addition to their role in legislature, they may provide certain services to their members should they so choose. Basic guild structure is determined by law, ensuring they all share certain important features vital to their effective operation, which together constitute the Typical Guild Framework.

The officers who run their guilds are chosen by the membership of the same in elections. However, as with all seats across the advisory councils of the Directory, those individuals tasked with acting on behalf of their guild in the Council of Labor must be members of the Libertine Party.

Function and Form

Function

The purpose of the guilds is to serve as a more direct mediator between the Principality's government and the Principality's productive forces, i.e. labor, than would otherwise develop organically within the existing structures of the Pillow Fortress. This is a mutually beneficial arrangement by which the government exerts overall, though not necessarily absolute, control of the economy, while labor is able to ensure it receives equitable treatment and compensation. All governments engage in this kind of push and pull with labor, but in most the relationship is obscured, usually by dividing representation purely along geographical location, thereby adding unnecessary regional material needs which can conflict with those of the state as a whole. This is partly the reason for splitting the Directory into three co-equal advisory councils. It's believed that collapsing this distance will bring about greater economic prosperity thusly: A more equitable distribution of economic gains by labor will in turn motivate greater productivity and agitation for policies that will grow the economy, believing that even greater such gains will be the result. It can be argued that this cycle takes place to some degree within every economy, whereby individuals tend to do better in economies which are, by whatever metric, themselves doing better, however the obscurity between labor and its outcomes can lead to backwards, reactionary politics on both the left and the right, something which is to be avoided.

Form

Just as the separating of overall economic policy from geographic location serves to prevent wealthy regions from exploiting those less so, steps must be taken to prevent any one guild from being in a position in which it can likewise exploit those less powerful. This is why the guilds are grouped by craft rather than industry. No economy will be equally divided between all its industries, there's bound to be some that are far more productive than the average, and from among that group still a few which are more productive still. Imagine, as an example, if the Pillow Fortress's sovereignty was limited to a small island and its surrounding EEZ, and the guilds were arranged by industry, than the Seafaring Guild would certainly have inordinate power compared to even all other guilds combined, as everything from trade, tourism, the production of food, transportation, etc. would be dependent on those jobs. It is therefore likely that, once having attained this superior position, the members of the Seafaring Guild would seek to extract additional wealth for themselves at the expense of the other sectors of society. This is not done out of malice, but rather, the simple, self-motivated calculus that all individuals engage in to some degree. Such a state of affairs would be a disaster, and lead to the relative decline of the Principality despite certain segments doing quite well for themselves. Contrast that with the same scenario, except that instead of being organized by industry the guilds are organized generally by craft. While the Seafaring Guild might have an internal belief of its own superiority, it would be unable to function without the participation of the shipwrights of the Manufacturing Guild to build their ships, the mechanics of the Service Guild to repair them, and logistical support from the Administration and Management Guild. While all those other guilds would have members within the seafaring industry, by being separated their interests lie with those of their craft, and so any such domineering would be unlikely to persist. In practice the guilds must work together and reach consensus, which results in a more equitable, tangible distribution of economic gains, which spurs greater investment and growth, which leads to more gains which spurs more growth which...

Guilds

There are twenty-six guilds, representing most of the various professions found within a modern society, with two notable exceptions: military personnel are not represented so as to prevent the undue influence of the military-industrial complex. Similarly, civilian law enforcement is also not represented, as it would be a conflict of interest for those who enforce the law to also be the ones writing the law. Criminal professions are technically not not represented, but rather default to that guild which is nearest to the job in question. For example, while it hasn't yet been determined which one specifically, there is a guild among the twenty-six that represents assassins.

• Academic Guild
• Administration and Management Guild
• Agriculture Guild
• Art and Design Guild
• Athletic Guild
• Civil Service Guild
• Clergy Guild
• Construction Guild
• Culinary Guild
• Entertainment Guild
• Her Majesty's Royal Guild
• Household Management and Childcare Guild
• Journalism and Printing Guild
• Manufacturing Guild
• Medical Guild
• Resource Extraction Guild
• Retail Guild
• Retirement Guild
• Science Guild
• Seafaring Guild
• Service Guild
• Sex Work Guild
• Spacefaring Guild
• Technical Guild
• Transportation Guild
• Zoological Guild