Archive:000/Labor

Quality

A large percent of jobs suck(...)( job satisfaction is low for the majority of people; exact statistics will be added here soon ). Workers are treated badly; workplace designs are often unergonomic, unhealthy and unpleasant.

Usually there are simple fixes that bosses either haven't considered, or don't care about because they don't improve profits. (...)( As a society, we should care about making jobs more enjoyable - even if it sacrifices a bit of productivity. Most people spend a large chunk of their lives working. )

This wiki will be a platform for specific, material ways that workplaces could be improved.

• You'll be able to post anonymously - and collaboratively - on how your workplace could & should change.
  • (no matter if it's a quick fix or a complete redesign)
• There will be pages for every type of job.

With consensus comes power. (...)( Radical change (the good kind) is more viable when more people are on board. This wiki's approach is to build a clear, shareable vision of how things could be better. )

Beyond just envisioning how the same work could be done more enjoyably, we can also consider how entire industries could reallocate resources better, to do different work that the world needs more of. From a leftist perspective, seize the means of production. (...)( Just imagine what could be done if industries weren't bound by profit motives and existing government policies - as workers, we could use our talents to harness existing capital to finally meet the world's needs. )

For now(...)( because this wiki isn't open yet ), you can post in the 💬 discussion discussion.

Quantity

The 40-hour work week was invented(...)( or devised, advocated for )at a time when only men worked (mostly). From that perspective, today's work week should really be 20 hours. Less, in fact, because technology can(...)( in principle )allow more work to be done in less time(...)( even though it doesn't always in practice, due to what David Graeber would call bullshit jobs ). With a shorter work week, people would have far more freedom.

Currently,

• People are overworked under capitalism(...)( or at least, countries that call themselves capitalist ).
• People are also overworked under communism(...)( or at least, countries that call themselves communist ).

This page isn't to advocate for one system or another(...)( This wiki might eventually have pages that do, btw. ), but to look at the material conditions in common.

No matter the economic system: If we produce the same amount of stuff, using the same technology, it's going to need (roughly) the same amount of labor.

Thus, if we want a world where people work less,

(where people have more time for friends & family etc.),

we have to be honest about what goods & services the world should produce less of.

It's a tradeoff, but a worthwhile one.

Easy targets

To some extent, we can reduce production/labor while barely sacrificing quality of life at all.

We would have to fight politically against the following things:

• Planned obsolescence
• Car dependency
• Zero-sum jobs
• Wasted goods

Harder sells

If the "easy targets" aren't enough on their own, we can go further(...)( to reduce stress both on workers and on the planet )if we're willing to change our lifestyles a bit.

Services: Some countries have a service-based economy. A shorter work week would mean that people eat less often at restaurants, cafes, fast food etc. (...)( Some argue that cooking at home is also a form of labor. So are there ways to reduce the total labor involved in food? Yes: Processed food(...)( still needs factory labor, but less overall labor per unit ). The main problem is its lack of nutrition. I'll probably make another wiki page for solutions to this. ) (...)( Under ideal anarchism, restaurants & bars & nightclubs would be run communally, like a house party or dinner party. No one would have to work as "staff" per se - it would just be self-serve and anyone could volunteer in the kitchen at any time. This system is fairly viable, as seen in some churches & temples. )

Goods: Consumer goods depend heavily on factory labor. We can still have nice things, we just wouldn't replace them as often. Reduce; re-use; see also: frugalism. (...)( Note: This isn't to tell poor people to consume less, but rather to tell middle-class & richer people to consume less. )

In some socialist systems, food would be completely free, which means that cashiers may not be needed in grocery stores. Other kinds of labor might be needed though.^{[QUANTIFICATION needed]} Farmers are always needed in any case, but keep in mind that farming is less than 2% of jobs in highly-industrialized developed countries. (...)( Then again, if we listen to those who advocate for less mechanized farming, then we could expect the amount of agricultural labor to increase. In developed countries, currently most people don't learn farming in school. This would have to change. Teaching kids to grow plants is probably a good thing regardless. )

But isn't creating jobs a good thing?

Read the exploiter's fallacy page for more details.

This section will be filled in soon.

What about A.I. and automation?

This past century is full of technological innovations that increase efficiency(...)( i.e. get the same work done with less human labor ). We could've reduced the work week long ago, but instead our economy decided(...)( for lack of a better word )to produce more stuff per capita(...)( more goods & services, to compensate for the increased efficiency ).

If we want robots(...)( or to be more general, automation and artificial intelligence )to really free us from work this time, we have to break this cycle(...)( because while it's cool to have more things and all, sooner or later it's diminishing returns ).

Implementation

How could the world actually transition to being less overworked?

This section will be filled in soon.

Spoiler: It depends whether it's done through socialism or free markets etc.

Data tables

How much labor does it take to sustain the things we need & want? Below is a table of estimates:

Thing to sustain	Hours/week per capita	Would decrease if	Would increase if
Food productioniincludes farming & processing, but not sales or services		Plant-based Less food waste	Less mechanized farming
Energy		Frugalism Walkability	Renewables
Housing		Less cosmetic renos More essential renos Multi-unit buildings	Single-detached homes
...

Here's also a table for individual goods/services:

Item	Human labor hoursifor most items, there are only estimates & averages. More precise data is extremely hard to find.
Tee shirt
Smartphone
Car
House
...

These tables have not been filled in yet.