Earlier quoted context omitted.
> modern work for a lot of jobs has become de facto indentured servitude It’s slavery as a service
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What does “shitty job” mean in the low-skill, low-pay world?
161–170 of 458 posts
Re: What does “shitty job” mean in the low-skill, low-pay world?
#162Any job that doesn’t holistically build your skill set (antithetical to a career). As in, the money is irrelevant in the grand scheme of things. If you stock Shampoo on a shelf, and you can’t flip that into something useful, it’s a worthless job. It’s better to get paid $0 being in the right field for a bit than actually being paid in the wrong path. It’s negative money unless you are using it to pivot into the right…
>It’s better to get paid $0 being in the right field for a bit than actually being paid in the wrong path. I am going to make the guess that you either have a lot of money right now or have an amazing support system to help you because such options aren't available to everyone who is making sure their food budget is correct down to the penny.
> because such options aren't available to everyone
So ? If it’s aplicable to you take it if not seek better advice
I love the universal advice police - everything has to be available to everyone or else it’s useless
Re: What does “shitty job” mean in the low-skill, low-pay world?
#163Earlier quoted context omitted.
Cynically untrue. Amazon is not even close to bottom of the barrel. And it's clear you haven't paid market rent in a major city since you bought that starter home back in the 90s - 42k is a joke when your rent is close to $2500 and you get no benefits.
So rent a room and/or don’t live in the best part of the city. That’s what I did near Boston a few years ago. My rent was well under $1000. Do people think they’re entitled to private apartments in the most expensive cities in the world?
> Do people think they’re entitled to private apartments in the most expensive cities in the world?
Yes, they do. Read any thread on a vaguely left-leaning subreddit that even starts approaching discussions of renting, or landlords, or landlord-tenant relations, and you'll get flooded with comments so detached from reality it will stun you.
Re: What does “shitty job” mean in the low-skill, low-pay world?
#164Earlier quoted context omitted.
didn't downvote, but I wonder if you have a study showing the stats. Before I've heard that psychopaths are over-represented in politics, as CEOs, as lawyers, as law enforcement, and as criminals. Now also, evidently, in pediatric oncology?
Oh okay I see. When I said "such professions" I meant all of the ones the parent had mentioned: medicine, lawyers, law enforcement. And like you said CEOs and politicians can be added to the list. I know I read something about surgeons in particular having an overrepresentation of psychopaths, but I don't have them handy. I'd imagine it could be true for pediatric oncologists as well for the same reasons, but I don't…
ok understandable, although I think probably everyone jumped to the same conclusion I did as you quoted from the section most pertinent to pediatric oncologists, and I think that was the profession most central to the parent comment.
Re: What does “shitty job” mean in the low-skill, low-pay world?
#165Earlier quoted context omitted.
As far as low-skill, high-pay goes, dockworkers unloading ships is up there with meatgrinder jobs. Your team gets paid for each lb / kg unloaded off the ship, and that sum is divided equally over each team member. So the faster and more ships your team can unload, the more you're paid. That's the incentive. I once got paid almost $1000, in just one day - but that day was 20 hours long, and you're pretty much beat to…
That actually sounds like a great way to workout while getting paid! Do they accept short/temporary/irregular stints?
It is not a workout. It is repetitive work, the same motion literally hundreds and thousands of time. You will be injured far sooner than you will get in better shape.
If you want a job where you can be paid to get in shape, join a military reserve force.
Re: What does “shitty job” mean in the low-skill, low-pay world?
#166Earlier quoted context omitted.
> Amazon is not even close to bottom of the barrel. What would you define as the bottom of the barrel then? There has to be a sensible threshold that delineates between 1) "I encountered a lot of bad luck but I am motivated and want to get myself out of this situation and 2) I simply don't care. Most of the physically able that fall under 1) can get a job at an Amazon warehouse. For those in poor health, I will agree…
> You are approaching this subject as if living in an area where rents are $2500 is a right and not a privilege And you're approaching this subject as if Amazon warehouses are uniformly distributed throughout the country, such that median rents _matter_. They aren't, and they don't. Amazon warehouses are typically just outside of (or even within) population centers, where rents exceed median, often substantially. How…
edit: I just thought it might be fun to calculate and shared my calculation. Sorry it wasn't welcome but I'm outside of the delete window so I'll just remove the numbers and leave this apology.
Re: What does “shitty job” mean in the low-skill, low-pay world?
#167I think this article starts to touch on a topic area I don't hear much about but am extremely frustrated by: how modern work for a lot of jobs has become de facto indentured servitude. In the "When They Know They've Got You" section, they mention the real challenges of not being able to obtain a lawyer if things truly aren't fair. The average worker can't afford anything without taking on debt. Insurance is a scam in…
>how modern work for a lot of jobs has become de facto indentured servitude...The average worker can't afford anything without taking on debt. For people from other countries wondering about the veracity of these claims, let's take an example: The typical shitty job everyone on here complains about is working at an amazon warehouse. This is a job people with no skills take on. They pay 15 USD an hour. In other curren…
Whoever complains about slavery in the US should look up the 996 working hour system in China (spoiler: 72 hours per week).
Why compare ourselves to China and not to a place like Argentina or wherever they take mid-day naps during weekdays? Because you don't want to fall behind in the global economic race. As the world becomes increasingly interconnected, there are going to be fewer and fewer protections for the local industries. For example, back in the 20th century it was possible to ban imports of various foreign goods, because those same products could be manufactured anywhere. But we're increasingly getting to the point where there are only 2 or 3 options for most of the tech products (mobile phones, computer operating systems, anything AI-related). In 20-50 years from now, things are only going to get worse. As a first-world country, you might still have a chance to be a relevant exporter in the mid and late 21st century, which will hopefully pay for the cost of importing everything else you can't manufacture locally. But you won't get there with siestas.
Re: What does “shitty job” mean in the low-skill, low-pay world?
#168I think this article starts to touch on a topic area I don't hear much about but am extremely frustrated by: how modern work for a lot of jobs has become de facto indentured servitude. In the "When They Know They've Got You" section, they mention the real challenges of not being able to obtain a lawyer if things truly aren't fair. The average worker can't afford anything without taking on debt. Insurance is a scam in…
>how modern work for a lot of jobs has become de facto indentured servitude...The average worker can't afford anything without taking on debt. For people from other countries wondering about the veracity of these claims, let's take an example: The typical shitty job everyone on here complains about is working at an amazon warehouse. This is a job people with no skills take on. They pay 15 USD an hour. In other curren…
> Americans are just so rich they are out of touch with reality.
It’s this one. As a Canadian, I can’t take anything they say seriously about their housing “crisis” or cost of living. Almost everything is more expensive in Canada and most jobs pay a lot less, but things are still not really that bad, so I know that the Americans just like to complain.
The only way it’s possible for an American to struggle financially is if they do it on purpose.
Re: What does “shitty job” mean in the low-skill, low-pay world?
#169Earlier quoted context omitted.
I don't doubt one bit that the average small business owner is roughly as shitty as a manager at a large chain. But I don't think that undermines the core motivation behind "buy local": all else being equal, buying local is still a way to improve the resilience and diversity of your local economy. We shouldn't let the fact that managment/ownership appears to be generally morally corrosive taunt us away from doing som…
That being said, some owners are so reprehensible that buying at a mega corp is the better choice. A local business to me was boycotted out of existence after they had a meltdown on Facebook when they were criticized for their support of the fascists that tried to overturn the election on Jan 6.
This reminds me of a local business owner who, in the span of a week,
* made a big rant on his company Facebook page about Starbucks and law enforcement, advocating for a boycott
* made another big rant about the local pride parade
* made a rant that was half "woe is me" and half "everyone is a sensitive snowflake" after people started boycotting his business for his remarks
Unfortunate political views aside, I was tickled by the prompt response from the public and his visible confusion of "Wait, I can be boycotted??"
Re: What does “shitty job” mean in the low-skill, low-pay world?
#170For the interest of HN reader demographics: The salary of experienced assembly line worker in South China has passed that of USA's central states few years ago, just before the CoVID. For places like Bangladesh, Vietnam, and Pakistan, working in a factory is quite a dream job, and a ticket to the middle class living. People who poo on "sweatshops" in Asia hardly realise that these sweatshops are better than 90% of al…
> The salary of experienced assembly line worker in South China has passed that of USA's central states few years ago, just before the CoVID.
What’s the salary for an experienced assembly line worker in US or China ?