Work is Ruining All Our Lives!
So, the government is worried because worker productivity isn't growing but wages are...
WASHINGTON - The productivity of American workers slowed to a standstill in the summer while wage pressures were rising at the fastest clip in more than two decades, a combination likely to raise inflation concerns at the Federal Reserve.
The Labor Department reported Thursday that productivity, the amount of output per hour of work, showed no change in the July-September quarter while labor costs rose by 3.8 percent. For the past year, labor costs are up by 5.3 percent, the fastest increase since 1982.
Maybe the answer here is that this is a good thing. What happened to being concerned about the quality of life of your employees? I don't need a McMansion or to eat out 10 nights a week or to wear the most expensive clothes. I need to spend time at home with my family, with people I care about. I need to go on vacation and read books. I need to watch sports on TV and walk my dog. Increasing productivity means more hours at the same pay. That seems like a breakdown of the social contract between employers and employees.
I'm the last person to claim to have balanace in my life, however, I strive for it. We've gone mental in this country. To be honest, we need the baby boomers to retire so there are more jobs than people, that would be good for us. Remember how great things were in before the dotcom bubble burst?
If we burn people out and make it all about buying crap, what good is that? We need to bring manufacturing back to this country, we need to bring back the 40 hour work week, we need to keep work sane. Otherwise, what is life worth?
WASHINGTON - The productivity of American workers slowed to a standstill in the summer while wage pressures were rising at the fastest clip in more than two decades, a combination likely to raise inflation concerns at the Federal Reserve.
The Labor Department reported Thursday that productivity, the amount of output per hour of work, showed no change in the July-September quarter while labor costs rose by 3.8 percent. For the past year, labor costs are up by 5.3 percent, the fastest increase since 1982.
Maybe the answer here is that this is a good thing. What happened to being concerned about the quality of life of your employees? I don't need a McMansion or to eat out 10 nights a week or to wear the most expensive clothes. I need to spend time at home with my family, with people I care about. I need to go on vacation and read books. I need to watch sports on TV and walk my dog. Increasing productivity means more hours at the same pay. That seems like a breakdown of the social contract between employers and employees.
I'm the last person to claim to have balanace in my life, however, I strive for it. We've gone mental in this country. To be honest, we need the baby boomers to retire so there are more jobs than people, that would be good for us. Remember how great things were in before the dotcom bubble burst?
If we burn people out and make it all about buying crap, what good is that? We need to bring manufacturing back to this country, we need to bring back the 40 hour work week, we need to keep work sane. Otherwise, what is life worth?
Labels: life balance, productivity, work
posted by Martin at
9:42 AM
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