this post was submitted on 20 Feb 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 comes down to your level of analysis, or how you define relations. Having been living off $30-40k income for most of my life, I can definitely get the sentiment of the large differences between that and someone making $100k (even $60k), or at least someone living a working class vs middle class lifestyle. But that also goes for someone making $0-10k to $30-40k. Either way, the salience of financial insecurity hits a lot harder for someone with less existing cash.
That said, I also get the sentiment of the nil difference between working and middle class versus the ultra rich who generate huge swaths of passive income and can basically can dictate whether or not the lower classes have enough for rent. Why bother fight against each other when there's a much larger and casual target.
In a more nuanced answer, for solidarity sake we do need to recognize our similarities to work together for a better system. But that doesn't mean we should ignore our differences and privileges either. We should work towards achieving core necessities for all even at the cost of our own privileges (i.e. an opposite tragedy of the commons: those with some threshold excess contribute to the pond). Determining that threshold is another question, with both absolute and relative poverty thresholds with their own criticisms. And not to say that no class hierarchies will form either, technically skilled and heavily laborious jobs should be rewarded, and people will always try to skim a little off the top to get ahead of their own benefit. But in recognizing our differences, we recognize a need to monitor ourselves for the benefit of everyone.
I agree with everything you've said except for this. With worldwide growing inequality, it's very clear where those resources are going. The people making less if the janitors get a pay bump isn't the middle managers. It's the owners, by a very tiny amount. If you don't have a share of the company, you're not affected by other people making more or spending less.
Funnily enough though, another winner in that scenario are small local business owners. More local income means more customers.
I mean you're right on that, it's not like someone having a Netflix account or not heavily affects the impoverished to the same extent Netflix the company has. But I meant moreso to hold so as a general mindset/expectation. Like owning a cottage is something doable, or at least was doable, for someone with a upper-mid income. Maybe a mid income with some time. But generally, but it's an expense that really only benefits a few that could be used for something else. Not to say don't enjoy things, but put your purchases in perspective with some deliberation.
No entirely on topic, but this mindset would also benefit environmentalism. Being in Canada, I can't count the number of times people have complained about the end of plastic bags. But really, the trouble of keeping a couple cloth bags on you at all times or even purchasing something later is a bare minimum hassle that outweighs the additional trash. Sure, consumers' impact is more negligible than industry waste, and industry waste should be the main focus. But from an individuals' perspective, you need to be slightly more mindful of your own responsibility if you care about your impact because you're the only person that can keep yourself accountable all times. And it adds up with each person, etc.
The existence of a large gap doesn't negate the differences between working and the top 7-2% ers. All I'm saying is there is very clearly a difference.
Yeah, I'm agreeing with you on that. I'm moreso stating this because it feels like people are talking past each other is all. An extra $5k for someone making $30k affects much more than someone making $80k regardless of top percenters.