“You think I want to be here? You think I want to work all these hours? I have a wife and new kid at home, you think I don’t want to be spending time with them?!”
That is a direct quote from a former coworker at a well-known manufacturing company notorious for overworking their people on the floor. He was ranting about how offended he was by other people not volunteering to take overtime.
I was… confused by his statements. The overtime he was referring to was entirely voluntary, no one had to volunteer. The company was facing a nasty downturn and there was barely enough work to go around as it was. But he was furious at the idea of people refusing to work literally pointlessly, taking time away from their loved ones. The absolute contempt in his voice was striking, and I remember it clearly years later.
I wanted to turn around and tell him, “No, it doesn’t sound like you do?” but I felt he was already hurting enough.
Couldn’t it just be that he “had” to be there because he needed the money? I mean I don’t know why whether other people also did over time mattered to him at all.
Every one I know who’s been in a similar situation of needing all the extra hours they can get for bill paying, especially during a downturn in business, has always been grateful for people who went home early/on time.
They’ll be there shuffling people off, “Oh yeah, go home and rest, no problem! I’ve got this! Go ahead!” Hell I’ve done that myself a time or two when money has been tight. Being mad at people who don’t take those precious hours is … Odd.
You’re a big person, to keep your empathy in such a situation over your temper. Don’t know that I could’ve done the same.
That’s not what my last boss told me though, why would he be motivated to lie?
Do you really think someone would do that? Just go up to their employees and tell lies?
Where i work we just invented free beer friday at work… After we are done (normal 7,5h) we all go to the fridge and take a beer out.
My grandfather tells me stories about how the factory he worked for, they would just straight-up take a half-day off on Fridays to drink with the manager on a picnic bench. Don’t imagine that was common, per se, but you’d be hard-pressed to find a corporation that wouldn’t sniff that out today and crush it for the sake of ‘productivity’. The increased influence and omniscience of the investor class, even over the capitalism-happy 60s and 70s, is… stark.
We got some snarky emails from management for having a contribute what you want lunch hour barbecues on a little crappy propane grill. Can’t imagine drinking a beer with them on a half day.
Yeah we could have half day off on Friday but we get a extra paid week off if we don’t, most of us just work the few hours.
But yeah, big ass companys are run by people that don’t want work to be done, but to own people for a certain amount of time.
Arguably, working more unpaid or underpaid hours is actually actively detrimental to other workers and to the value of labor in the market.
