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I'm a Frito-Lay Factory Worker. I Work 12-Hour Days, 7 Days a Week

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Re: I'm a Frito-Lay Factory Worker. I Work 12-Hour Days, 7 Days a Week

#141

Post by nimchimpsky »

andrepd wrote: post #139
knuthsat wrote: post #2

Anyone knows why people decide to do this kind of time consuming work? Is the world getting hard enough that there is no alternative? Whenever I see people working really hard in other parts of the world, especially when the country is filled with other opportunities, I always wonder is it just everyone else that is raising the bar and now the standard is very time consuming work. For example, there's year long touri…

> Anyone knows why people decide to do this kind of time consuming work? Is the world getting hard enough that there is no alternative? I don't think anyone works 12/7 in a dingy factory doing repetitive work for fun. So the answer must be yes, there is no alternative for them.

I can't believe this an actual question. Fuck me hackernews is a dumpster fire sometimes.

Re: I'm a Frito-Lay Factory Worker. I Work 12-Hour Days, 7 Days a Week

#142

Post by codyswann »

rantwasp wrote: post #69
clairity wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

as nice as that utopia would be, the fundamental flaw with trying to limit working days/hours is that some people will still pour their whole lives into work, which creates an iterated game that pushes the equilibrium for everyone toward working more. there's no practical way to mitigate this powerful, arguably inate, incentive. the other option is actively coercing a daily/weekly work limit, and that not only severe…

if people want to work more that’s fine but the others should not be punished for it. you see: some people push very hard because their life is their work. They don’t have time for something else because they work a lot, and they work a lot effectively consuming what should be their free time because they don’t have the mental energy to so something else. Once you create a bit of space and disentangle yourself from y…

What industry do you work in?

Re: I'm a Frito-Lay Factory Worker. I Work 12-Hour Days, 7 Days a Week

#143

Post by parafactual »

kcplate wrote: post #31
AndyMcConachie wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

People running factories have been exploiting and overworking the people working in their factories since there have been factories. There's nothing new here.

I think there is always going to be a bit of a disconnect and lack of empathy about excessive work hours when an hourly worker gripes about forced overtime (where in the US they are legally required to be paid at least 1.5x their hourly rate for the overtime) is complaining to salaried management (that are generally working a similar number of hours…but unpaid beyond the 40). Kind of makes you wonder which side is be…

As far as I can tell - correct me if I'm wrong - management is just easier compared to (say) manual labor in a factory.

They're also paid more per expected hour.

Re: I'm a Frito-Lay Factory Worker. I Work 12-Hour Days, 7 Days a Week

#144

Post by schwartzworld »

baron816 wrote: post #84

> I stay here because in two years, I'll be 62 and I have a union pension acquired over 37 years. I've spent so much time here that I might as well take that pension and social security and call it quits. Had they not been locked in by the pension, I'd imagine most of them would've quit, and Frito-Lay would've been force to improve conditions. I wonder if unions prefer pensions pretty much for the same reason--it all…

Yeah, definitely that and not making sure their members have security when it's time to retire.

Re: I'm a Frito-Lay Factory Worker. I Work 12-Hour Days, 7 Days a Week

#145

Post by harryh »

ALittleLight wrote: post #136
harryh wrote: post #131

Earlier quoted context omitted.

He was featured anonymously. Though it's possible that there is enough information (age, tenure, gender) in the article to identify him. A bit hard to say. He'd also have a pretty clear cut case with the NLRB if he was fired or otherwise punished for talking to the press about labor conditions (which isn't to say that this doesn't happen sometimes anyways). EDIT: Er, nevermind. I misread it as being told to Mark McCa…

Anonymously? They call him by name (Mark McCarter) and show a picture.

Er. Oops. My bad. See my EDIT note.

Re: I'm a Frito-Lay Factory Worker. I Work 12-Hour Days, 7 Days a Week

#146

Post by mcculley »

alisonkisk wrote: post #89
mcculley wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In addition to the many insightful replies here add: Once you have a working class addicted to some combination of fast food, sugar, caffeine, alcohol, pot, opioids, and other drugs which cost money, they have a reduced capability to dig themselves out of a hole.

You skipped rent which dwarfs all that. Fast food and sugar are cheap for what you get. Pot isn't addictive.

For many, addictions are not dwarfed by rent or other housing costs. I recommend you meet some addicts and learn of what they are going through.

The myth that pot is not addictive is contradicted by the physical withdrawal symptoms experienced and described by many.

These are tools to keep siphoning labor from the working class. The system is working as designed.

Re: I'm a Frito-Lay Factory Worker. I Work 12-Hour Days, 7 Days a Week

#147

Post by heavyset_go »

phreack wrote: post #73
pryelluw wrote: post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Anyone knows why people decide to do this kind of time consuming work? Is the world getting hard enough that there is no alternative? As someone who had to do similar work for years the answer is that there were no alternatives. No one takes a shitty job on purpose.

I thought so as well, but then I started offering jobs to people I knew hated their jobs and also worked unpaid overtime constantly, with the smallest salaries. But for some reason, when offered a 6x salary freelancing, for less hours, with guidance, and the road paved as much as possible, everyone refuses. Turns out there are people who take shitty jobs on purpose, out of a sense of... I don't know, fear, embarrassm…

How many of these people had all of the necessary funds to fall back on should their foray into freelancing not go as planned?

Re: I'm a Frito-Lay Factory Worker. I Work 12-Hour Days, 7 Days a Week

#149

Post by edoceo »

regularjack wrote: post #140
cj wrote: post #128

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It’s these people I think about when reading the weekly threads here on developer burn out.

Burnout is a legitimate health issue for many people in this forum, and elsewhere.

Every laborer sells the same the same thing: their body. It's just about which parts for how much - and the toll/risk each entails. All deserve a fair wage and respect.

Re: I'm a Frito-Lay Factory Worker. I Work 12-Hour Days, 7 Days a Week

#150

Post by mmmBacon »

knuthsat wrote: post #2

Anyone knows why people decide to do this kind of time consuming work? Is the world getting hard enough that there is no alternative? Whenever I see people working really hard in other parts of the world, especially when the country is filled with other opportunities, I always wonder is it just everyone else that is raising the bar and now the standard is very time consuming work. For example, there's year long touri…

Not everyone has the opportunities that many of us on HN have enjoyed. The HN crowd is insanely privileged. Don’t assume they have had the same access to opportunity that you did or they have the same talents you do.

In my own life, I was one decision away from driving trucks in West Virginia. The decision at the time was not obvious and the path I took was much harder. It took 10 years to see light at the end of the tunnel. However, I have since had incredible opportunities that I could never have imagined at that time. It was a costly personal decision as I lost a lot of important human connections along the way.

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