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#Post#: 9699--------------------------------------------------
"Great Resignation" labor movement and strikes
By: Zea_mays Date: November 8, 2021, 2:47 pm
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Some information about this was posted in a different thread,
but I will make a new thread for this since I think it's a
distinct phenomenon worth discussing on its own.
HTML https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Resignation
In addition to the millions of people who have been removed from
the labor force due to dying from Covid, millions more have
taken early/unexpected retirements, and millions more have quit.
Some families have moved from 2 income-earners to 1, because
childcare is too expensive to justify both parents working,
others have moved in with family since they cant afford to live
independently and can therefore survive prolonged unemployment,
others have been able to reduce their living expenses and quit
their 2nd or 3rd job. I think many others have simply quit, even
without a long term plan, because they are sick of being
exploited.
In the US, "essential workers" were called "heroes", yet paid
minimum wage (which is not enough money to afford rent anywhere
in the US), abused daily by mentally ill rightists who think
Covid is a hoax (and some have even been murdered for telling
people to wear masks), have risked contracting Covid daily (and
many have had employers who told employees to come in while sick
with Covid!). Despite unemployment reaching levels not seen
since the Great Depression, the stock market has gone up and
rich people have made literally trillions in profit due to the
pandemic. Meanwhile, non-elite people are starving.
HTML https://www.cbsnews.com/news/billionaires-pandemic-1-trillion-wealth-gain/
Business owners have tried to control the narrative by calling
it a "labor shortage" and saying "no one wants to work" or "no
one will apply for jobs". Yet it is not uncommon for young
people with college degrees and respectable resumes to apply to
literally hundreds of jobs and not hear anything back. Recently,
one person applied to 60 job openings from employers who
complained "no one wants to work". Yet only one bothered to
interview him:
HTML https://www.wptv.com/news/national/florida-man-goes-viral-after-applying-to-60-entry-level-jobs-getting-1-interview
Seems like businesses are trying to extract as much work as they
can from existing understaffed employees, without raising their
pay or hiring new workers.
---
In the US, workers in many large corporations have recently gone
on strike:
[quote]Striketober is the labor strike wave in October 2021 by
workers in the United States in the context of strikes during
the COVID-19 pandemic. During the month, more than 100,000
workers in the United States either participated in or prepared
for strikes in one of the largest increases of organized labor
in the twenty-first century. [/quote]
HTML https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Striketober
[quote]Is America experiencing an unofficial general strike?
[...]
Americans are also quitting their jobs at the highest rate on
record. The Department of Labor reported on Tuesday that some
4.3 million people quit their jobs in August. That comes to
about 2.9% of the workforce – up from the previous record set in
April, of about 4 million people quitting.
All told, about 4 million American workers have been leaving
their jobs every month since the spring.
These numbers have nothing to do with the Republican bogeyman of
extra unemployment benefits supposedly discouraging people from
working. Reminder: the extra benefits ran out on Labor Day.
Renewed fears of the Delta variant of Covid may play some role.
But it can’t be the largest factor. With most adults now
vaccinated, rates of hospitalizations and deaths are way down.
My take: workers are reluctant to return to or remain in their
old jobs mostly because they’re burned out.[/quote]
HTML https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/oct/13/american-workers-general-strike-robert-reich
[quote]But academics at Cornell University launched a strike
database on May 1 that uses social media and Google alerts to
keep track of all the strikes and protests happening in the
U.S., even if they involve just a few workers. The database
shows a picture of growing worker activism, of small actions
that tell a story of how people at workplaces small and large
are feeling after 19 months of a global pandemic, says Johnnie
Kallas, a PhD student who is the director of Cornell’s Labor
Action Tracker. It has documented 169 strikes so far in 2021.
“Workers are fed up with low pay and understaffing, and they
have more labor market leverage with employers needing to hire
right now,” he says. “You are seeing a little bit more labor
unrest.”
Of course, compared to half a century ago, there still aren’t
many strikes in the U.S. There were 5,716 strikes in 1971 alone,
according to government data from when the government tracked
smaller strikes. And the share of unionized workers in the U.S.
is near an all-time low, with just 12.1% of workers represented
by unions last year.
But the activism comes at a time when approval of labor
unions—even among Republicans—is trending upwards—and when a low
unemployment rate is giving leverage to workers who have long
put up with poor conditions and pay.[/quote]
HTML https://time.com/6105109/workers-strike-unemployment/
Many of the workers on strike are Republican voters, yet they
don't see the irony in the fact that Republican politicians
don't support non-elite Americans.
[quote]
Notably absent in this show of support, however, are any
Republican elected officials — even those who directly represent
the Battle Creek area.
Neither U.S. Rep. Peter Meijer (R-Grand Rapids) nor state Sen.
John Bizon (R-Battle Creek) have publicly commented on the
Kellogg strike. Meijer and Bizon did not respond to requests for
comment.
“I can tell you that our plant in Battle Creek is probably 70%
Republican,” said Heather Greene, a 15-year warehouse crew
leader at Kellogg. “[But] this isn’t a left or right issue. …
There’s no place for politics when it comes to a living wage.”
“Even though we aren’t hearing from the elected Republicans,
this isn’t about party, and I personally hope that they will see
that and … realize that it is OK to support striking workers,”
Greene said. [/quote]
HTML https://www.metrotimes.com/news-hits/archives/2021/10/29/as-kellogg-strike-stretches-past-3-weeks-workers-say-theyve-noted-lack-of-gop-lawmaker-support
#Post#: 9980--------------------------------------------------
Re: "Great Resignation" labor movement and strikes
By: Zea_mays Date: December 4, 2021, 5:48 am
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Wall Street has named the Antiwork Reddit forum as one of the
"long-run risks" of becoming a prolonged labor movement. (For
reference, this forum has over 1 million subscribers and is
larger than the Reddit conservative forum).
HTML https://i.redd.it/is1ukyvamsz71.jpg
This means that the forum is already being astroturfed (as users
have already noticed), and the forum will continue to be
disrupted by elites in order to prevent its from effectively
leading a labor movement.
I would recommend everyone scroll through some of the posts to
see workers' complaints now, before the quality of the forum
declines:
HTML https://old.reddit.com/r/antiwork/
[quote]
[quote]if this sub was not compromised they would not provide a
direct link here. I think they are building the base here to
then steer everyone into their own direction in an effort to
control everyone, their perception, opinions, and ultimately
decisions to benefit the owner class.
[quote]Never Forget the abject fucking failure that was OWS.
Never let things get so muddied and out of focus here. They know
exactly what levers to pull to attempt to get everyone divided,
and they've been winning for a solid decade. We need to keep
this shit honed.[/quote][/quote]
They absolutely are already here, and are assuredly taking notes
and planning moves.[/quote]
HTML https://old.reddit.com/r/antiwork/comments/qulffi/antiwork_movement_may_be_longrun_risk_to_labor/hkr8kr2/
--
Some people are beginning to engage in bare minimum direct
action:
HTML https://old.reddit.com/r/antiwork/comments/qt7fu0/made_flyers_for_the_break_room/
HTML https://old.reddit.com/r/antiwork/comments/qulrth/did_the_thing_with_the_flyer_wish_me_luck/
HTML https://old.reddit.com/r/antiwork/comments/qwf1vc/i_posted_the_25_or_walk_flyer_in_a_real_life/
HTML https://old.reddit.com/r/antiwork/comments/qx6oty/i_put_up_anticapitalist_posters_in_store/
HTML https://old.reddit.com/r/antiwork/comments/r1e2o7/this_just_came_out_of_my_receipt_printer_at_work/
Could this be the next Occupy Wall Street? The forum seems to be
hitting critical mass recently.
--
This is one of my favorite posts:
Multi-billion dollar medical company thanks its overworked
nurses by....giving them a pet rock.
HTML https://old.reddit.com/r/antiwork/comments/qpocb1/happy_nurses_week_from_kaiser_permanente/
[img width=1280
height=1280]
HTML https://i.redd.it/adi2192q1gy71.jpg[/img]
No wonder so many people resign.
#Post#: 9981--------------------------------------------------
Re: "Great Resignation" labor movement and strikes
By: Zea_mays Date: December 4, 2021, 5:50 am
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Ah yes, the 21st century counterculture solidarity is beginning.
HTML https://i.redd.it/wtkpupsxkn281.jpg
HTML https://old.reddit.com/r/antiwork/comments/r5douq/same_story_different_country/
More about the Lying Flat movement:
HTML https://trueleft.createaforum.com/issues/simple-living-movements/msg7613/#msg7613
#Post#: 10129--------------------------------------------------
Re: "Great Resignation" labor movement and strikes
By: Zea_mays Date: December 16, 2021, 7:25 pm
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The Lying Flat movement and the Great Resignation/Antiwork
movement linked together by Wall Street this time:
[img width=723
height=1280]
HTML https://i.redd.it/ri3x598o5c481.jpg[/img]
(I searched for the title, but I don't think there's an article
for this, just the instagram post?)
#Post#: 10152--------------------------------------------------
Re: "Great Resignation" labor movement and strikes
By: guest55 Date: December 16, 2021, 9:38 pm
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The world as we know it is ending. Why are we still at work?
[quote]From the pandemic to climate change, Americans are still
expected to work no matter what happens. [/quote]
HTML https://www.vox.com/2021/12/16/22837830/covid-pandemic-climate-change-great-resignation-2021
#Post#: 10266--------------------------------------------------
Re: "Great Resignation" labor movement and strikes
By: guest55 Date: December 26, 2021, 8:38 pm
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Ubisoft Devs Are Quitting At Such An Alarming Rate That Workers
Call It "The Great Exodus"
HTML https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lL6zjPSix8I
#Post#: 10506--------------------------------------------------
Re: "Great Resignation" labor movement and strikes
By: Zea_mays Date: January 11, 2022, 11:53 am
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Another Wall Street article linking Lying Flat and Antiwork.
Will China embrace this and win the culture war? The US Antiwork
"movement" doesn't have any big picture goals besides "have
tolerable work conditions", whereas the Lying Flat movement is
an entire worldview which is anti-consumerist.
[quote]‘Lying Flat,’ ‘Antiwork’ And The ‘Great Resignation’
Spreads Worldwide As Young People Protest Against System
There’s a growing worldwide movement led by young people.
Weighed down with overwhelming college debt, unable to find
decent paying jobs (leading to the inability to purchase homes),
stuck in low paying jobs with no future and being forced into
the gig economy made Gen-Zs and Millennials feel misled and
betrayed by their elders.
They were told if they went to school, followed all the rules,
they’d live the American Dream—a nice large home in the suburbs
with a white picket fence, or a cool New York City apartment,
couple of kids, pets, fancy vacations and luxury automobiles.
For many, this dream never materialized.
[...]
In the Great Resignation trend, roughly 40% of the jobs that
people quit were in the restaurant, hotel, travel, bars,
warehouses, manufacturing and healthcare sectors. These folks
contend with long, constantly changing hours, rude customer
behaviors, low wages and high stress.
[...]
The younger generation may be the first group in modern history
that won't do better financially than their parents. With tens
or hundreds of thousands in student-loan debt, young adults find
it almost impossible to purchase a home, get married and start a
family. The debt burden, along with rising home prices and
inflation, doesn’t leave them with sufficient funds to afford
the lifestyle that Baby Boomers took for granted.
This is happening in China too. Multibillionaire Jack Ma,
founder of Alibaba, championed the work culture known as "996."
This number refers to Ma’s belief that everyone in his company
should happily work from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., six days a week. It's
equivalent to America’s “hustle- porn,” rise-and-grind culture
that resonated in the pre-pandemic time period.
[...]
President Xi Jinping is not too pleased with this trend,
stating, “It is necessary to prevent the stagnation of the
social class, unblock the channels for upward social mobility,
create opportunities for more people to become rich, and form an
environment for improvement in which everyone participates,
avoiding involution and lying flat.” He is concerned that the
lying flat is in direct conflict with the “Chinese Dream” or a
“great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.”[/quote]
HTML https://www.forbes.com/sites/jackkelly/2021/12/30/lying-flat-antiwork-and-the-great-resignation-spreads-worldwide-as-young-people-protest-against-system/
Only a traditionalist would reject an idealistic counterculture
movement with the energy and promise for a real "national
rejuvenation"...
#Post#: 10514--------------------------------------------------
Re: "Great Resignation" labor movement and strikes
By: guest55 Date: January 11, 2022, 8:04 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
Japanese man who rents himself out to 'do nothing' for a living
says he will 'reply to chitchat, but that's it'
[quote]Shoji Morimoto works as a so-called "Do Nothing
Rent-a-Man."
People hire the 38-year-old to join them in activities like
eating, shopping, and going for walks.
"I don't make any special effort," he told CBS News, adding, "I
reply to chitchat, but that's it."[/quote]
HTML https://www.businessinsider.co.za/japanese-man-shoji-morimoto-do-nothing-rent-a-man-chitchat-2022-1
And he comes with a mask attached: ;)
[img width=1280
height=960]
HTML https://cdn.24.co.za/files/Cms/General/d/126/a1f44385d1da4b1aab4ed993a96c2fc9.jpg[/img]
So, uhhhmmm, I was reading in your resume that you don't
actually do anything, is this correct?
Yes! This is correct!
You're hired!!! :D
#Post#: 10635--------------------------------------------------
Re: "Great Resignation" labor movement and strikes
By: guest55 Date: January 18, 2022, 12:12 am
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Where are all the workers?
[quote]Where have all the workers gone? It's a question that
politicians, business owners, and economists are all asking. CNN
Business’ Jon Sarlin dives into just what's behind the
unprecedented labor market.
#CNN #News[/quote]
HTML https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=phYWYtH4N60
#Post#: 10647--------------------------------------------------
Re: "Great Resignation" labor movement and strikes
By: Zea_mays Date: January 18, 2022, 12:56 am
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The reward for the essential workers who businesses call
"heroes"? Homelessness.
HTML https://i.redd.it/svo6bslqy8b81.jpg
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