averygoodun42 (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
averygoodun42) wrote2007-04-24 09:58 am
averygoodun42) wrote2007-04-24 09:58 am
(no subject)
Geoff left for work at 6:30 yesterday morning, although Babe's awakening might have delayed him by fifteen minutes or so. He got back from Deerfield at 6 this morning.
What happened to 8 hour days? Including the lunch break? (I won't even mention pensions... that's too depressing.) Oh, sure, he gets comp time (which is a concept that has been corrupted to the detriment of the workers, basically forcing them to work for less than minimum wage), but if he ever quit, he wouldn't be able to cash it out. (And oh, what a cash out that would be... he has something like 400 hours of comp time, and that having used several months of it for vacation over the years.) Hell, the company hasn't even repaid his travelling expenses. It's been a year now.
And all this for a job that he doesn't like. That wears him down. That depresses him. That's defeating him. If he loved the work even a little bit, I wouldn't mind nearly so much. But...
I wish Geoff could get himself to see that there are other options... options he might actually enjoy. Options that would make him feel like the intelligent, useful person he is rather than... this.
He doesn't get paid enough to feel this shitty. He doesn't get paid enough, period. But, that's the way of it, isn't it? He's bought into the serf mentality, just like everyone else who fears for the job they hate, the job that abuses them.
But still we're afraid of unions. We're still afraid of the big bad Commie... and how stupid is that, when we're in the stranglehold of the Corporations?
Bah, I say. Bah humbug!
What happened to 8 hour days? Including the lunch break? (I won't even mention pensions... that's too depressing.) Oh, sure, he gets comp time (which is a concept that has been corrupted to the detriment of the workers, basically forcing them to work for less than minimum wage), but if he ever quit, he wouldn't be able to cash it out. (And oh, what a cash out that would be... he has something like 400 hours of comp time, and that having used several months of it for vacation over the years.) Hell, the company hasn't even repaid his travelling expenses. It's been a year now.
And all this for a job that he doesn't like. That wears him down. That depresses him. That's defeating him. If he loved the work even a little bit, I wouldn't mind nearly so much. But...
I wish Geoff could get himself to see that there are other options... options he might actually enjoy. Options that would make him feel like the intelligent, useful person he is rather than... this.
He doesn't get paid enough to feel this shitty. He doesn't get paid enough, period. But, that's the way of it, isn't it? He's bought into the serf mentality, just like everyone else who fears for the job they hate, the job that abuses them.
But still we're afraid of unions. We're still afraid of the big bad Commie... and how stupid is that, when we're in the stranglehold of the Corporations?
Bah, I say. Bah humbug!
no subject
http://www.arthurmag.com/magpie/?p=1644
The link is for an interview with a comic book writer Grant Morrison. It's a little over the top a la Rob Brezsny, but I thought he made some good points in the last few paragraphs. (I found this article in the archives of Ash's brother's blog.)
I don't have the same responsibilities as Geoff, but I've felt an immense relief since I left my job. I am definitely more centered, peaceful, and optimistic. However, it's time to start thinking about what happens next, and how I can avoid the same pitfalls in the next job. Work is part of the human condition, but that does not mean it should be exploitative.
(On a more practical level, would it be possible for Geoff to start working one day a week less until he's used up some of his comp time?)