The Daily Rumpus
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From Stephen Elliott
A British thinktank, the New Economics Foundation, is advocating for a shorter work week as a cure for Britain’s economic, social, and environmental woes. The economists argue that the solution to fewer jobs due to technological advances involves work-sharing, and a government legislated maximum work week.
...moreThis infographic breaks down the workdays of countries in the OECD (Organization for Economic and Co-operation and Development). Distinguishing between paid and unpaid work, the graphic reveals which countries have the shortest and longest average working day according to OECD data.
...more“Today, careers consist of piecing together various types of work, juggling multiple clients, learning to be marketing and accounting experts, and creating offices in bedrooms/coffee shops/coworking spaces. Independent workers abound. We call them freelancers, contractors, sole proprietors, consultants, temps, and the self-employed.”
In 2005 one-third of the American workforce was a part of the “freelance economy,” and data suggests that the numbers have been increasing as the economy has forced some workers out of traditional jobs, while others have chosen the life of the independent worker.
...more“The great thing about freelance, of course, is the numerous freedoms it embraces, chief among them being the freedom to work in your underwear. This seems to be the one that everyone knows. I was talking on the phone to an uncle of mine who’s in a nursing home, and when I told him I was working freelance, he said, ‘Oh, the underwear people!’”
Essays like this are the reason I put pants on sometimes.
...more“What the profiles fail to reveal is that the literary apprenticeship is a lengthy one for the majority, that getting published at all is difficult, and to get paid enough to not do anything else but write is virtually a dream.
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“I really had nothing left in my life when I came to trucking, just the clothes on my back.”
...moreA couple months ago, we wrote about Matthew Crawford’s book Shop Class as Soulcraft, and around the same time I read another interesting review of the book, by Caleb Crain. (I refrained from posting about it at the time to avoid Crain-overkill.) In it, he describes the growth of wages, and consequently, leisure during the industrial revolution, and then goes on to produce an amazing quote from Thoreau about money:
...moreIn a manifesto (er, “ideas piece”) about the importance of the workplace in writing, Alain de Botton calls on contemporary writers to write about work. “If a proverbial alien landed on earth,” he says, “and tried to figure out what human beings did with their time simply on the evidence of the literature sections of a typical bookstore, he or she would come away thinking that we devote ourselves almost exclusively to leading complex relationships, squabbling with our parents, and occasionally murdering people.” Yet work, according to de Botton, is at the core of who we are.
...moreIf you’re heading out onto the job for the first time, you’d probably better wait a moment and watch Staplerfahrer Klaus, the most important safety-training video in any language. Matter of fact, it wouldn’t hurt to buy the DVD, either.
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