General Strike on October 15th

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While I really cannot argue against what you have said -- it seems valid within its own context -- there is a great deal of truth from both of our perspectives.

Yes, I frame my arguments from an education/skills-based perspective, while you seem to frame yours from an exploitation/opportunity perspective.

The bottom line is that opportunities exist, and people are not taking them -- whether they can not or they will not take the opportunities seems to depend greatly on the individuals, and not on (all of) the employers.

In other words, those who are both able and willing to earn a living can do so, even if they have to relocate or (slightly) lower their standards.

I think the problem is bigger than just stagnant wages so addressing imbalances in the workplace won't be a panacea but that addressing those and similar issues in housing to change the balance of that relationship will help contribute to reducing how far people seem to be expected to lower those standards.

The various factors that make up the power imbalance lead to more being asked in all sorts of ways of those people, and that by itself can make it harder for those people to remove themselves from that situation.

I agree with you that when the demands to get a living wage aren't too extreme people should be willing to be able to meet them, but when there's a bunch of structural flaws that make that very difficult for a wide swath of the economy including people with PhDs because of a mix of employment terms and housing costs to gain access to those jobs, as well as other costs associated with becoming credentialed things need to be done to address the structural problems and make things more workable otherwise things reach a breaking point and radical ideologies start to gain traction.

So ... the General Strike, if every hourly wage-earner participates, would have the opposite effect of what Ayn Rand predicted in "Atlas Shrugged" -- the abolition of individualism and the advent of collectivism in employment and earnings.

Right now, a person whose specialist skills are in demand could negotiate a higher wage and benefits package than a person whose skills are more general (or lacking entirely).  If the strike is successful, a person who spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to earn a Master of Science degree would have no more negotiating power than the person who can barely understand which end of a broom sweeps the floor best -- everyone gets paid the same wage, receives the same benefits, and is treated to the same opportunities.  This would apply equally to everyone, everywhere, and all of the time.

A Workers' Paradise?  Maybe, and maybe not.

Personally I don't believe in the idea of utopia because a society always will face new challenges and issues. Whigs and Marxists both seem a little too convinced their ideals are actually fate and I think that sometimes makes people less willing to strive for more immediate changes.

surprise several large compies in the US have gone on strike , including John Deere.
Have to wonder where this is going.?

And then demand more money for the same minimum effort. That's pretty NEET.

How about we bring back the year for canceling debts? Hey it's in the Bible.

05:23 - After the usual morning routine, I start off for work.  No picket lines, only the usual bums outside the liquor store waiting for it to open.

05:53 - Arrived at work.  Usual Friday-lite morning traffic.  No new signboards hanging from the overpass.  No picket lines blocking the entrance to the parking lot.

05:57 - Started coffee in break room.  Used a hand-powered grinder on fair-trade beans.  I love the smell of fresh-ground coffee in the morning!

06:41 - Completed morning rounds.  The usual people starting to trickle in.  No reports of covid or labor unrest.  No one has called in 'sick' or asked for the day off.  Looks like business as usual.

07:27 - 100% attendance.  What strike?  (edit 1)

08:00 - Begin coffee break.  Look out window at the absence of picket lines and protesters for 10 minutes while quietly sipping coffee.  Life is good.  (edit 2)

08:15 - Back to work.  Saw a sign on the back of an SUV -- blue letters on white background -- that said, "HONK IF YOU THE DODGERS!!"  Go team!"

Last edited by Fnord on 15 Oct 2021, 10:20 am, edited 3 times in total.

If I was put into that type of situation, I would quickly move out of that situation to a place that better values my skills. Yes, that includes leaving the country. I am not greedy overall, as I do not need a six figure paycheck to get by on. (Many of my fellow PhD chemists in industry are making those numbers right now. I am still thinking of going that direction just to escape the politics in higher education.). However, I worked hard for my education and to hone my skills to the level I have. I have a certain value that must be met to be happy with my job.

Communist countries tend to hold tightly to their educated and skilled workers because they do not want them to go elsewhere. They understand that it is a real risk if those particular workers leave. It leads to a brain drain situation for that country.

Muslim countries too!  Any place that takes a hard line against personal freedoms will tend to regulate or restrict the departures of their "best and brightest".  Many high-tech companies here in the U.S.A. will have their degreed/salaried/skilled employees sign a contract that supposedly prevents those employees from taking a job with a competitor within 1 to 5 years after resigning.  There are ways around this, of course; but the idea that a company from which I resign -- and which no longer pays my salary -- can dictate whom I can work for later is a travesty of Trumpian proportions.

Not seeing signs of a strike so far...

Was at several stores still no trace of a strike.

I think old Bill may have anticipated today's "strike"...

Don't work and get more rights. Yeah that's not how things go usually.