this post was submitted on 21 Sep 2023
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Work Reform

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Auto workers, writers, actors, Starbucks workers, Amazon workers, UPS drivers, flight attendants – labor isn’t a ‘special interest’. It’s all of us

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[–] Semi-Hemi-Demigod@kbin.social 76 points 2 years ago (4 children)

Seems to me that if we have an economy based on consumer spending, giving consumers more money to spend would be a good thing.

[–] NaibofTabr@infosec.pub 30 points 2 years ago (1 children)

No no, see once the most super-rich person collects all the money they win the game, and then we all get to quit.

[–] Chetzemoka@kbin.social 11 points 2 years ago (4 children)

If by "quitting" you mean we all die, I think you just might be right.

[–] sik0fewl@kbin.social 3 points 2 years ago

Can I quit right now?

[–] NaibofTabr@infosec.pub 3 points 2 years ago

New Game+ ?

[–] jaybone@lemmy.world 1 points 2 years ago

But before that we fight each other in a lawless starvation hellscape.

[–] algorithmae@lemmy.one 23 points 2 years ago (1 children)

I legitimately don't understand why this is such a hard concept to grasp. I'd gladly buy your $thing if I could afford it

[–] 4am@lemm.ee 7 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

Because the way they see it, you’d have to take their money through wages in order to afford stuff. If their only liquidity is through perpetually revolving loans against the equity they hold, then their only job is to make that equity ever increase. The less those companies pay, the higher the profit. The higher the profit, the greater the dividends. They greater the dividends, the higher the stock price. The higher the stock price, the larger the valuation. Ever increasing collateral = perpetual revolving borrowing patterns = cheat code for unlimited money.

But if it ever falls apart they’ll be on the hook for a loan so big they might not be able to pay it back if they liquidate everything. So they MUST win at all costs. This is the deal with the devil. Ultimate power, but you must keep the plates spinning. One wrong move and you are collected.

[–] rebul@kbin.social -1 points 2 years ago (2 children)

Heck yeah! And of course, the companies will just eat that loss and not increase their products' price to cover higher wages.

[–] Semi-Hemi-Demigod@kbin.social 11 points 2 years ago

They've increased costs without covering wages so that would be a refreshing change.

[–] Chetzemoka@kbin.social 48 points 2 years ago (1 children)

As I literally sit here in the cafeteria on my day off rallying for our upcoming union vote 💪

[–] Blapoo@lemmy.ml 17 points 2 years ago

Hell ya! Go get'em tiger!

[–] ieightpi@lemmy.world 43 points 2 years ago (3 children)

Its really fascinating to see how cyclical our culture is. Ive heard historians say that we are experiencing a very similar time period compared to the late 1800s and the early 1900s.

Lets hope that this trend doesn't lead to another world war and a depression. But I think what these experts have been trying to convey is its likely we will find ourselves in a new social revolution in the coming years. It happened back then, it will happen again.

[–] SinningStromgald@lemmy.world 28 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Let's hope it's a social revolution that goes forward and not backward.

[–] ieightpi@lemmy.world 4 points 2 years ago (2 children)

Is optimism just another way of saying someone's naive? Rhetorical.

I think the doomer mentality in the US has gotten out of hand.

[–] Sunforged@lemmy.world 4 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

Theory of alienation in action. Only solution is to get involved in the growing labor movement. A big reason my wife is adamant in organizing is setting the example for our kids, as they get closer to becoming teenagers, that you don't have to just become a doomer and act like there is nothing to be done.

[–] theneverfox@pawb.social 1 points 2 years ago

I mean, it's not for no reason - if the system doesn't change, almost no one who doesn't have strong financial security already has a light at the end of the tunnel. And the system has only changed for the worse for most of us - less freedom, less protection for individuals, and no efforts to reign in corporations. Most young people aren't going to be able to retire, and most people are unable to get ahead at all

People can't imagine the structural changes we need to take back control of our democracy and make it work for us again, let alone how to get there... There's a lot of (designed) learned helplessness. It's hard for people to imagine things actually improving, we've had almost no wins in my lifetime - just going back and forth on social issues as worker rights backslide so far we've literally gone back to child labor

[–] squib@kbin.social 3 points 2 years ago

Strauss Howe Generational theory is probably what you're think of.

[–] timicin@kbin.social 5 points 2 years ago (1 children)

not unless biden can help it, again.

[–] Toribor@corndog.social 10 points 2 years ago (1 children)

I was mad about the Biden administration's approach to the rail strike too but you should know that the administration continued to negotiate after ending the strike to get workers the benefits they deserved while also avoiding the devastating impact of a strike.

[–] ram@lemmy.ca 1 points 2 years ago

There was clear damage resulting from the admin's actions.^[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2023_Ohio_train_derailment] Did the rail workers ever have their demands met? /g

[–] MrBusinessMan@lemm.ee 4 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Wrongo! Strikes are bad for EVERYONE and should be ILLEGAL! Whenever I hear whispers of union stuff at my company I fire the guilty employee and I also call the cops on them and say I saw a drug deal happening at their house.

[–] jedi_hamster@lemmy.world 1 points 2 years ago

Bobby relogin