Politics 2014

[lost highway]

Well, we went from some real cowboy anti-regulation shit and a huge crash, to a lukewarm, pseudo-technocrat, semi-reform on banking policies.  I predict you're right, a painful correction that's not quite as nasty as the last one, but nothing to look forward to.

[LouieB]

All true, or not true.  Time will tell, but little of this has anything to do with Obama anyway.

 

LouieB

[lost highway]

Time will tell, but little of this has anything to do with Obama anyway.

 

I agree with that, but I feel like he could do more.  I feel like Elizabeth Warren is the only prominent voice of sanity on these issues.

[KevinG]

I am sure you probably heard this but Obama is the worst president in modern history!  But of course if you actually look at the poll and how it was conducted it is pretty much bullshit.  But it makes for good headlines.  

 

I don't think Obama has been great, but when put him in with the likes of Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford, that is a pretty tough sell.  But in our headline obsessed ADA culture this will get a lot of play on talk radio.

 

But it looks like we added another 288K jobs so that is a good thing.  

[Atticus]

But our in headline obsessed ADA culture this will get a lot of play on talk radio.

 

I see no reason to throw the disabled under the short bus.

[caliber66]

Our in? You're in!

[KevinG]

I see no reason to throw the disabled under the short bus.

 

I can only assume you are talking about the idiots on talk radio.  

[Hixter]

But it looks like we added another 288K jobs so that is a good thing.  

“What we’re seeing is a growing trend of low-quality part-time jobs,” said Carrie Gleason, director of the Fair Work Week Initiative, which is pushing for labor reforms. “It’s creating this massive unproductive workforce that is unable to productively engage in their lives or in the economy.”

[lost highway]

Does labor reforms mean union busting?

[KevinG]

“What we’re seeing is a growing trend of low-quality part-time jobs,” said Carrie Gleason, director of the Fair Work Week Initiative, which is pushing for labor reforms. “It’s creating this massive unproductive workforce that is unable to productively engage in their lives or in the economy.”

 

I totally agree with that.  While the jobs numbers are encouraging, the type of jobs are these part-time lower wage jobs.  This all goes back to what the role of corporations and the result of the free market.  Part-time work is generally far cheaper than full time work.  And as we all know it is nearly impossible to live making minimum wage.  

 

Corporations are really holding all of the power hear.  The employment outlook still is very hard for many Americans and they take what they get, as the article states.  So corporations can pay lower wages and only part time work with little or no benefits.  At some point we went from business respecting its workforce and having them be proud of it workers and thankful that they choose to work for them, to where we are now, where workers are just thankful to be working and are treated poorly by the workers.  

[uncool2pillow]

Corporations are really holding all of the power hear.  The employment outlook still is very hard for many Americans and they take what they get, as the article states.  So corporations can pay lower wages and only part time work with little or no benefits.  At some point we went from business respecting its workforce and having them be proud of it workers and thankful that they choose to work for them, to where we are now, where workers are just thankful to be working and are treated poorly by the workers.  

 

I think in the long view of history employers have never truly respected the workforce.  There was a time in post WWII America when workers had leverage over employers for a lot of reasons (strong unions, booming economy gave added value to workers, harder to export jobs than it is now).  Unfortunately, that time was an aberration, not the norm. I don't see any easy fixes to this.

[Atticus]

have you seen a lot of the workforce?

[Hixter]

have you seen a lot of the workforce?

There's a lot of truth to that. Things seem to have changed, even in the 30 years that I've been in the workforce. A large number of people sit behind Internet-connected computers these days and it's almost a given that they'll waste a lot of time screwing around on non-work-related browsing. Then there are the text messages, phone calls and the almost ubiquitous 'leave early on Friday.'

 

Our grandfathers' generation would shake their heads at how lazy and pampered we've become. Some of it is certainly due to the loss of labor-intensive manufacturing jobs, but we're still a rather doughy workforce.

[KevinG]

There's a lot of truth to that. Things seem to have changed, even in the 30 years that I've been in the workforce. A large number of people sit behind Internet-connected computers these days and it's almost a given that they'll waste a lot of time screwing around on non-work-related browsing. Then there are the text messages, phone calls and the almost ubiquitous 'leave early on Friday.'

 

Our grandfathers' generation would shake their heads at how lazy and pampered we've become. Some of it is certainly due to the loss of labor-intensive manufacturing jobs, but we're still a rather doughy workforce.

 

I can't speak for others but I know myself I am more connected to my job then ever before and generations prior.  I regularly work 50 plus hours a week and am on call at all hours.  Also a I am frequently checking emails and working way past business hours at my home.  But yes I do send some time on non related work items.  I think our grandfathers would also shake their heads at how consumed many of are by our jobs and have taken over "at home time."  

 

I put in these hours because I don't want to lose my job (which has never been directly told to me, but strongly hinted it.)

[IRememberDBoon]

I thought our grandfathers who had office jobs took summers off and three martini lunches?? Can you imagine the increase in productivity in any company with IT depts now? Its through the roof. Say accounting or human resources for instance. At least 1000 percent increase minimum. One person can easily do in one hour what it took at least ten people 8 hours a piece to do. Especially with document imaging and content management pieces.

[lost highway]

There's a lot of truth to that. Things seem to have changed, even in the 30 years that I've been in the workforce. A large number of people sit behind Internet-connected computers these days and it's almost a given that they'll waste a lot of time screwing around on non-work-related browsing. Then there are the text messages, phone calls and the almost ubiquitous 'leave early on Friday.'

 

Our grandfathers' generation would shake their heads at how lazy and pampered we've become. Some of it is certainly due to the loss of labor-intensive manufacturing jobs, but we're still a rather doughy workforce.

 

Some people at office jobs do that because they can and they're earning more money than people in 'the Greatest Generation'.  It sounds like you haven't hung out with public school teachers, or blue collar migrant workers much- two different forms of intense ass busting.

I thought our grandfathers who had office jobs took summers off and three martini lunches?? Can you imagine the increase in productivity in any company with IT depts now? Its through the roof. Say accounting or human resources for instance. At least 1000 percent increase minimum. One person can easily do in one hour what it took at least ten people 8 hours a piece to do. Especially with document imaging and content management pieces.

 

Good point.

[Hixter]

It sounds like you haven't hung out with public school teachers, or blue collar migrant workers much- two different forms of intense ass busting.

I don't think it would be stretching the truth to say that close to 50% of my friends are teachers. There are 4 or 5 Ph.D.s among them, and although I know that they work hard, they aren't busting their asses any more than most people I know; I see plenty of Facebook posts and text messages during their office hours. Technology has lessened our workload, and that's great, but I still don't feel that most people work as hard now as they did in my earliest days in the workforce. That includes myself.

 

As for blue-collar workers, I have spent countless hours around less-than-legal workers from south of the border. I drink beer with them, cook with them and socialize with them, but I can't say that they work any harder than the people I've met over the last 35 years in the workforce. There's plenty of texting, moaning and shirking in evidence.

[uncool2pillow]

I am a teacher.  I work very hard at my job.  I know some who work harder (especially if the take on other duties like coaching and truly give their all to teaching and their extra assignment), some don't work nearly as hard.

 

From what I can tell of my friends, family, and acquaintances in other fields, it's about the same.  My brother, an attorney, works insane hours.  I have friends who are doctors and dentists.  Some seem to work harder than me, others not so much.  My dentist doesn't work that hard at all, but he's happy with his smaller practice.  So yeah, basically agreeing with Hixter here.  

 

I should clarify that I am factoring some really long days and weeks during the school year and balancing that out with summers "off".  This summer I've attended one 2 day workshop, will attend another, teach a professional development class (and get extra compensation), and re-worked a big chunk of my curriculum on my own time (at least 40 hours).  Teachers are just like everyone else in the workforce.  While there are some real saints among us (especially in special education), we're human. Some work hard, some don't.  Some waste their hard work due to poor talent or misdirected ideas.  Others are so creative and effective that they are great teachers with putting in fewer hours.

[Beltmann]

I'm a public school teacher, and I turn my phone off while at work.  In all seriousness, I don't even think about my phone between the hours of 7am and 4pm.  There's nearly zero opportunity for checking messages.  Maybe I'll check during lunch if I'm expecting some kind of emergency message, but otherwise I leave it untouched in my bag.  (Lunch, far from being a break, is actually one of the most frantic periods of the day: In 20 minutes I need to eat, check work email, set up for the next class, and literally sprint down the hall to use the bathroom, if there's still time.)  Wasting time on the Internet while at work?  Unthinkable.

 

I also know that my experience is mine alone.  I can't speak for teachers in other districts or other states.

 

EDIT: Noticed that I said "9am" when I meant to type "7am."

[uncool2pillow]

I'm a public school teacher, and I turn my phone off while at work.  In all seriousness, I don't even think about my phone between the hours of 9am and 4pm.  There's nearly zero opportunity for checking messages.  Maybe I'll check during lunch if I'm expecting some kind of emergency message, but otherwise I leave it untouched in my bag.  (Lunch, far from being a break, is actually one of the most frantic periods of the day: In 20 minutes I need to eat, check work email, set up for the next class, and literally sprint down the hall to use the bathroom, if there's still time.)  Wasting time on the Internet while at work?  Unthinkable.

 

I also know that my experience is mine alone.  I can't speak for teachers in other districts or other states.

Yeah, I turn of my phone too.  I think I'm a rarity in my building.  That's a great point.  Unfortunately, there are a number of colleagues (those under 30 predominately, though not exclusively) check their phones openly during class while students are forbidden from bringing theirs.  And while I sometimes waste time during lunch or (quite rarely, but sometimes) planning time, I know I'll pay for it later.

[Beltmann]

Unfortunately, there are a number of colleagues (those under 30 predominately, though not exclusively) check their phones openly during class while students are forbidden from bringing theirs.

 

Two years ago our employee handbook added language that explicitly prohibits teachers from using their phones during student contact time or planning periods.  This didn't affect me in the slightest, since I never used my phone during the day, anyway.  At the same time, however, our site adopted a policy that does allow students to use their phones, e-readers, iPods, or other items during "non-academic" times, such as study halls or off periods.  And next year, there is a district-wide initiative called "Bring Your Own Device" that will openly encourage students to bring their devices, connect to the school network, and use it for any kind of school-related reason, such as quick web research while in class.  It might prove very beneficial and lead to classroom innovations, but it might open a terrible can of worms, too.  I guess we'll find out!

 

I know what you mean about allowing yourself a brief moment of downtime and knowing that you'll pay for it later.  One of the reasons I'm so nose-to-the-grindstone during the day is that if I let up at all, I'll end up working that much more at home in the evening, which is unfair to my mental health and my family's well-being.  (As it is, I can work a frantic 11-12 hours during the day and still wind up further behind in my workload than when I started.  This current level of workload is, of course, unsustainable and basically precludes any kind of new creativity, but administrators and politicians don't comprehend the realities.)

[lost highway]

Yeah, I'm also a teacher.  My phone/facebook etc. is dead to me during work hours.  I think with our impression of the workforce: we see what surrounds us, and we interpret it how it serves our particular views.

[uncool2pillow]

FWIW, this site is blocked at my school.  There are much more profane places (The Onion is one fairly timid example) that aren't.

[uncool2pillow]

Oh, and I didn't respond to Beltmann's comment about the restroom.  I don't think people in other professions quite understand how bad this can be.  You're supervising kids 45-60 minutes at a pop (maybe more on "block scheduling").  During passing time, you need to set up for your next class and/or answer questions from students.

 

I've had more than one person who's left the profession tell me how nice it is to have the freedom to go whenever the need arises.

[Beltmann]

The sheer velocity of the day is what is widely misunderstood.  It's hard to explain to anyone who hasn't lived it.