I always think of my uncle when it comes to life questions about happiness and employment. In my life, I’ve known people who are miserable doing jobs they hate so they can have one day out of the week to “enjoy” all of the stuff they’ve purchased—or in the process of paying off. And I’ve known people working jobs many would look down their nose with condescension about, but were happy and content. My uncle Jerry was a garbage man in San Diego. He got up in the morning, went and did his job, and then spent the afternoon chilling with a Budweiser and a smile. For some people, including my grandmother and some members of my father’s family, they would sneer at my uncle’s life and think of it as a waste of potential. But, for him, he payed his bills, enjoyed doing what he did and the people he worked with, and was happy with the life he had.
At the end of it all, isn’t being happy with the life we lead the most important thing?
There is estimated to be $1.6 trillion in federal and private student loan debt. The average American household carries $6,741 in credit card debt, with more than $423 billion in outstanding balances. There are many types of chains in this world. Some of those chains come with smiling faces, 12-months no interest, and the idea of symbolic economic vitality. Some of the most fascinating aspects of modern society are ideas of happiness and success, and how they tie into the very nature of labor. Albert Camus once likened life to The Myth of Sisyphus, where the repetition of a work week for ephemeral pleasures becomes just as horrific a waste as eternally pushing a rock up a hill every day when viewed in perspective. Or as Camus said: “One must imagine Sisyphus happy.”
Friedrich Nietzche wrote about the idea of eternal recurrence and how if offered the chance to live one’s life over and over again, would it be “horrifying” or an affirmation of a life well lived? If someone knew they had to do this over and over again, would they really spend most of their existence in a cubicle pushing papers to have the latest iPhone and 60-inch television?
Work, and how it defines the ability to make choices about family and time, is the reason some people spend eight hours or more every day doing something they hate, in order to live in a house too big to support, filled with shit they don’t need, just to pay a mortgage and credit card companies every month. Is that supposed to be the dream? Is that really ... living? Or is it living for Citicorp and Bank of America?
I’ve never had to endure an asshole of a boss who likes to scream and yell when things go bad. But when I was in college, I worked retail in an electronics department. And what I remember and hate about it was how it made me feel about people. I thought so much less about humanity, from both sides of the buyer-seller relationship, and it really made me dislike people. The business was mired in dumb policies, unnecessary forms to fill out, and training videos to watch, while looking for every way to cut corners, and nickel-and-dime the employees and customers. At the same time, there were no depths to which consumers were willing to sink to in lying to save a buck.
In so many ways, the “associates” are the people caught in the middle.
Observations from my days working retail:
- When all else fails, scream or act dumb: As a general rule, I only get pissed off about something in public when someone is personally being a jerk and disrespectful. And the reason why is because I’ve been the guy who has to calmly explain why someone can’t return something they don’t have all the parts or box for after they bought it more than eight months ago. Some people’s reaction to that calm explanation of store policy is either to lie their ass off, or scream at the top of their lungs. I once had a man claim ignorance as to what could possibly be wrong with his television and demanded a refund. When the box was opened, the distinct smell of cat piss permeated the air and seemed to indicate the dude’s cat had pissed on the TV. Screaming is usually the better route, since most managers will give in and take stuff back in order to stop a scene. Of course, the effect of it is to make the associate look like the bad guy who doesn’t know what hell he/she is doing.
- Keepin’ up with the Joneses: I used to dismiss arguments about how powerful commercials, hype and social envy were in selling products. However, I don’t know how many times I experienced someone who walked into the store and said: “I need X. Please tell me what it does.” So the next 30 minutes of my life became a lecture on television features, computer accessories, etc., which was fine since it was my job. But it always made me roll my eyes a little that people would spend thousands of dollars and not take any time to do the least amount of research about what they’re buying.
- Shopping with your phone: This is true for my current job too, but I hate it when someone can’t put down their fucking phone to have a conversation. If someone is shopping for something, and they need to ask questions, at least hang up your phone. It’s a waste of my time to talk to someone that’s not listening, and needs me to repeat everything I say the second time.
- Lazy bosses and tattletales: I’ve never had a boss who was an asshole, but I have had a manager who thought their title meant they didn’t need to work. She felt being a manager meant sitting in her office, playing on the computer, talking to friends on the phone, and being bothered if she was asked for help. And there has been a bad co-worker or two. The worst was a woman who was gunning to be the next supervisor. So she would say bad shit about everyone—except herself—to the manager, even make things up to make herself look better.
According to a recent poll, 85% of American workers are happy with their jobs. However, 27% of the workers surveyed said they were not well paid, and 30% had seriously considered quitting their job in the last three months. A Gallup survey found only 15% of the world’s workforce is “engaged” with their jobs, speaking to levels of frustration. Other polling has found only 18% of managers at U.S. jobs had “high talent” for leadership skills, including the ability to encourage accountability in the workplace, motivate workers and build relationships with them, and about half of U.S. workers have left a job to get away from a bad manager.
Among other labor-related statistics:
- A majority of Americans view labor unions favorably, but the overwhelming majority of Americans don’t belong to one. Over the past three decades, the share of American workers who are union members has fallen by about half. Union membership peaked in 1954 at nearly 35% of all U.S. wage and salary workers, but in 2017 the unionization rate was just 10.7%.
- Among six industry categories Pew Research asked about in the spring of 2015, about eight in-ten Americans (82%) said manufacturing and factory workers should have the right to unionize. Large majorities backed the rights of transit workers, police officers, and public school teachers to do the same. About six-in-ten (62%) said fast-food workers should be able to unionize, while 35% opposed it. And by 52% to 40%, most Americans see the decline of union membership as a bad thing for working people.
- In 2016, millennials (generally anyone born between 1981 and 1996) became the largest generational group in the American workforce. According to stats compiled in 2017, about 56 million millennials were working or looking for work, 53 million Generation Xers were doing the same, and 41 million baby boomers were still plugging away in the job market.