except when they schedule you for slightly less than full time so they don't have to pay benefits . . . which is most of those UH OH my argument is invalid
I'm rarely asked to work more than the 40 in my contract. And my salary, while not anything all that amazing, is substantial enough to support my life and lifestyle. Additionally I've got a pension. Not much of one, but more than I had when I was a chef, which was zero.
I've done this. In fact, if I don't stay in a good rhythm with the exercise in particular, I can't effectively do *any* of it. I don't mean this to chide others - exercise is my main management for depression and anxiety. I *have to* do it. I’m doing the minimum due to an injury now, and it’s hurting me, in fact.
I don't think the phenomenon here is the post-war relic. The post-war relic is labor actually having some power, and being able to buy a house on one income before you're 50 (while not also being in a speculator/rent-seeker type role - ie, doing real work). But that was always unevenly distributed. So I think the bigger problem being described here is ideology about what is meaningful in any of those dimensions, especially with the perverse incentives and ultimately unsatisfying pressures of consumerism. In the US, in particular, we get pretty much zero social or educational support in figuring out what is meaningful and satisfying, and it shows in these kinds of Hell’s Treadmill comments. Also, the things that our society prescribes as valuable in those dimensions are literally choking the planet to death, so, you know, maybe we need to stop grasping for them.
Now, I am speaking from a privileged position – I am educated, and my family can be relied upon as a safety net in case of disaster. I have mainly had “day jobs” – never really pursued a career – but they’ve been reasonably well valued. But this guy is even more privileged than I am. He’s not thinking about people cobbling together 3 jobs to make sure their kids don’t starve, let alone when those jobs have zero decision latitude and shitty commutes, and they have no benefits so they can't save anything or their kids won't be eligible for Medicaid. He’s thinking about how stressful it is to have a design job in tech that makes him work all the time. From home. Or in an office a few blocks from his place. This is an issue of priorities, not something that the world foisted upon him.
@ardgedee Mine requires me to work no more than 40, or they have to pay me overtime, and they don't authorize overtime.
I’ve definitely had times when I could do all of this, even as a single dad, for many of the reasons that @caitlinburke notes, plus many lean income years. In my case, exercise meant biking to work, and cooking for myself was both because I like to, and because I couldn’t afford to eat out. Likewise, cleaning the house costs almost nothing, and weekend bike trips or racing were dirt cheap.
But maintaining basic exercise and some level of house cleanliness is a big factor in maintaining mental health for me, and inertia plays a big role. I’ve lived like that for a long time, and it feels weird to eat out very often, and I often can’t just sit in the house when there’s an obvious mess to clean up.
I have been lucky in being able to choose work that doesn’t require more than 40 hours a week, and i’ve gotten better over the years at protecting that work-life balance. I can afford to eat out whenever I like now, just in time to help pay for my kid’s college. If anything, it’s the exercise part of that list that suffers most lately.
@LocalStain you’re the third guy I know who had a career in restaurant kitchens before getting a job in public school IT. I wonder whether that’s a generally common career path.
except when they schedule you for slightly less than full time so they don't have to pay benefits . . . which is most of those UH OH my argument is invalid
I'm rarely asked to work more than the 40 in my contract. And my salary, while not anything all that amazing, is substantial enough to support my life and lifestyle. Additionally I've got a pension. Not much of one, but more than I had when I was a chef, which was zero.
I don't think the phenomenon here is the post-war relic. The post-war relic is labor actually having some power, and being able to buy a house on one income before you're 50 (while not also being in a speculator/rent-seeker type role - ie, doing real work). But that was always unevenly distributed. So I think the bigger problem being described here is ideology about what is meaningful in any of those dimensions, especially with the perverse incentives and ultimately unsatisfying pressures of consumerism. In the US, in particular, we get pretty much zero social or educational support in figuring out what is meaningful and satisfying, and it shows in these kinds of Hell’s Treadmill comments. Also, the things that our society prescribes as valuable in those dimensions are literally choking the planet to death, so, you know, maybe we need to stop grasping for them.
Now, I am speaking from a privileged position – I am educated, and my family can be relied upon as a safety net in case of disaster. I have mainly had “day jobs” – never really pursued a career – but they’ve been reasonably well valued. But this guy is even more privileged than I am. He’s not thinking about people cobbling together 3 jobs to make sure their kids don’t starve, let alone when those jobs have zero decision latitude and shitty commutes, and they have no benefits so they can't save anything or their kids won't be eligible for Medicaid. He’s thinking about how stressful it is to have a design job in tech that makes him work all the time. From home. Or in an office a few blocks from his place. This is an issue of priorities, not something that the world foisted upon him.
@ardgedee Mine requires me to work no more than 40, or they have to pay me overtime, and they don't authorize overtime.
But maintaining basic exercise and some level of house cleanliness is a big factor in maintaining mental health for me, and inertia plays a big role. I’ve lived like that for a long time, and it feels weird to eat out very often, and I often can’t just sit in the house when there’s an obvious mess to clean up.
I have been lucky in being able to choose work that doesn’t require more than 40 hours a week, and i’ve gotten better over the years at protecting that work-life balance. I can afford to eat out whenever I like now, just in time to help pay for my kid’s college. If anything, it’s the exercise part of that list that suffers most lately.