People not working anymore

[The Culture Bunker]

This happened to me too. I spent half the week putting up the Christmas decorations.

Only other thing I remember was the bloke showing me their computer system shutting down an email from a colleague entitled "Check these fuckers out!!!" with astonishing speed.

My placement was long enough ago that it was on some kind of internal network - I did actually remember I was asked if I wanted to go with the IT lads to help set up stuff at the town's new museum and obviously agreed to get out of the office. Good timing too, as just as we were leaving, we found out some old lad had turned up threatening to blow up a hand grenade unless he got his tax back.

[the hum]

This might be coal to Newcastle as far as this thread is concerned, because I'd imagine a lot of you have already read it. But if you haven't, "Bullshit Jobs" by the late great David Graeber is well worth a read.

Thinking about things with the background of that book suggests the phenomenon of what's now called "quiet quitting" was well underway pre-covid, but perhaps covid amplified it on two fronts; yes, the insurmountable barrier of ill health, but also the space it gave for people to re-assess their life priorities, if they were in a position to. I'd imagine Graeber would've had a lot to say about the current situation, but sadly we'll never know.

On a longer-term view, a culture of "work is good, even if it's shit work" and to your ultimate personal detriment has been with us for as long as I can remember. This thread sparked memories of the odious Patricia Hewitt in the late 90s pretty much shaming new mothers back into the workplace as quickly as possible, in a hideously preachy tone.

[Sebastian Cobb]

On a longer-term view, a culture of "work is good, even if it's shit work" and to your ultimate personal detriment has been with us for as long as I can remember. This thread sparked memories of the odious Patricia Hewitt in the late 90s pretty much shaming new mothers back into the workplace as quickly as possible, in a hideously preachy tone.

The usual argument is work gives people 'structure' and some social contact. As if we couldn't manage to somehow fill that ourselves if we had the means to live and some free time.

[Alberon]

The usual argument is work gives people 'structure' and some social contact. As if we couldn't manage to somehow fill that ourselves if we had the means to live and some free time.

But like family you don't really get to choose who you work with. I've worked with some right knobheads and they'd probably say the same.

[Sebastian Cobb]

But like family you don't really get to choose who you work with. I've worked with some right knobheads and they'd probably say the same.

Precisely. It's not like work social contact is inherently good, asking people if they've done x yet then awkwardly talking about what you've streamed as you made a coffee. That's not to say I haven't worked places where I get on well with people and have good camaraderie, but in my experience it doesn't need much to change at a workplace for that to ebb away, a few slight changes and people get itchy feet, or some of the more fun people move on etc.

In fact one of the first signs of me getting fed up with a job is becoming withdrawn and avoiding colleagues, ignoring just saying hello as I walked in, I could go days without having a proper conversation if I wanted to.

[superthunderstingcar]

Precisely. It's not like work social contact is inherently good, asking people if they've done x yet then awkwardly talking about what you've streamed as you made a coffee.

I'd never be brave enough to discuss the colour of my piss with work colleagues.

[the hum]

The usual argument is work gives people 'structure' and some social contact. As if we couldn't manage to somehow fill that ourselves if we had the means to live and some free time.

I think it can genuinely provide that in some situations, but more often than not it doesn't. Or people are conned into the received wisdom that it does, only to resentfully find over time that it doesn't.

I missed some of the structure and social aspects of my job in furlough, and I cling on to those positive aspects now. But only because I'm employed to feed people, in a nice, relatively chilled out and sociable setting, which at least feels like I'm assisting in meeting some basic human needs. If, as I was about a decade ago, still trying to hopelessly carve out an existence as some kind of programmer/web-designer, under the illusion that what I was doing was required and personally fulfilling, then I'm honestly not sure what would've become of me.

[Urinal Cake]

Some people should not work they just make things harder for everyone through laziness, incompetence or micro-managing etc even if they like work. They're the ones reducing productivity!

That said work, job satisfaction is for the few, can't wait to retire.

[FeederFan500]

This might be coal to Newcastle as far as this thread is concerned, because I'd imagine a lot of you have already read it. But if you haven't, "Bullshit Jobs" by the late great David Graeber is well worth a read.

Thinking about things with the background of that book suggests the phenomenon of what's now called "quiet quitting" was well underway pre-covid, but perhaps covid amplified it on two fronts; yes, the insurmountable barrier of ill health, but also the space it gave for people to re-assess their life priorities, if they were in a position to. I'd imagine Graeber would've had a lot to say about the current situation, but sadly we'll never know.

I thought Bullshit Jobs was fairly weak considering he is an academic, it was heavily sourced from self-selecting people who responded to a Twitter appeal for content rather than verifiable stories. The good bit was a history of employment and guilds which was from some academic research he did and it was quite obviously better than the rest of it. Some of his respondents had clearly treated it as a creative writing exercise.

[the hum]

I thought Bullshit Jobs was fairly weak considering he is an academic, it was heavily sourced from self-selecting people who responded to a Twitter appeal for content rather than verifiable stories. The good bit was a history of employment and guilds which was from some academic research he did and it was quite obviously better than the rest of it. Some of his respondents had clearly treated it as a creative writing exercise.

It was clearly intended as a more accessible work than the likes of "Debt: The First 5000 Years", but the vignettes would've been relatable for many.