this post was submitted on 21 Jan 2024
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Work Reform
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A place to discuss positive changes that can make work more equitable, and to vent about current practices. We are NOT against work; we just want the fruits of our labor to be recognized better.
Our Philosophies:
- All workers must be paid a living wage for their labor.
- Income inequality is the main cause of lower living standards.
- Workers must join together and fight back for what is rightfully theirs.
- We must not be divided and conquered. Workers gain the most when they focus on unifying issues.
Our Goals
- Higher wages for underpaid workers.
- Better worker representation, including but not limited to unions.
- Better and fewer working hours.
- Stimulating a massive wave of worker organizing in the United States and beyond.
- Organizing and supporting political causes and campaigns that put workers first.
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I think it's more of a "do you grind for that promotion or do you do just enough work to not get fired?" question. The system heavily relies on people believing they provide value to society through their work, and the fact that doing your job well is rewarding in itself. I see my whole generation being burnt out of this however.
I see that happening too, but at the same time I'm also witnessing their workload and demands on them being smaller than what it used to be (already at school), and their work conditions being greatly improved compared to previous times. There's clearly a systemic problem somewhere, as I don't think whole generations can suddenly be simply worse than previous ones, but at the same time it's crystal clear that the problem is not "too much work".
Jonathan Haidt has written about this a few times before[0], and his latest book[1] is coming in a few months. Should be interesting.
[0] https://www.thecoddling.com/
[1] https://www.amazon.com/Anxious-Generation-Rewiring-Childhood-Epidemic/dp/0593655036
This is exactly the kind of "back in my day" invalidating, subordinating bs that many workers, not just gen z, are sick of putting up with. No one wants to be talked down to, or to have to put up with constant boomer finger wagging. On the other hand, it's obvious when people talk like this that they're unable to accept how much things change, and regardless of age, shows how out of touch they are with what the average worker puts up with.
I'm sure the people (and children) working in factories in the industrial revolution probably had it easier than those who came before them too. Maybe they were spoiled for fighting for an eight hour workday and safety regulations /s
Millennials are some of the first to have to be "always on" with constant emails, and Slack, and companies monitoring their every move on their phones and laptops, and hiring managers scouring their social media before agreeing to hire them, people getting fired for having OF pages, and having to constantly post bs all over LinkedIn just to stay relevant since there's no way they'll be able to keep the same job for more than a few years. And that's just at their main job, nevermind the two other app-based "hustles" they're forced to have that pay less than minimum wage. Just because the demands are different doesn't mean they're any lower, nor any better.
I totally agree. And in addition to "having to be" always on, we very often also choose to be always on. This is one of the biggest problems of our generation, I think, and I'm not seeing any attempts at fixing it. If anything, we're trying to make it worse.
That first book seems like conservative whining about being "shouted down" on college campuses. I think this guy is too young to have experienced the 60s, because college campuses were a lot rowdier then.
His ideas don't look plausible to me at all. It sounds like he just wants attention.
I'm just saying that the university experience of my grandparents' generation in the 50s included trying to fight off the Soviet 8th Mechanized Army and becoming NYT Man of the Year.
That said, education becoming shittier definitely is a phenomenon across cultures.
Perhaps read the book first? I'm sure it's available from piracy sites if you don't want him to have your money. Ignoring a thing you disagree with initially is a great way to never improve intellectually.
My experience has been that, at least in education, it's inefficient work. My parents got to learn more and study less. They were taught stuff my classes just didn't have time for, while their school days lasted from 8:00 to 14:00, mine went from 7:00 to 15:30. I was bored through most of it.
It's not "too much work", it's "too much make-work".