What it says on the tin.
This is kinda crazy, but I got to thinking about how often managers will tell us not to discuss how much we're paid among our fellow coworkers. This is supposedly to keep workplace conflicts to a minimum, but as some have pointed out, it's really to keep people from having an excuse to demand raises.
So.
What if we just put it out in the open?
For everyone to see.
Literally.
Not just your coworkers, but your customers as well.
Hang a sign around your neck that shows what your company pays you. Not a weekly or monthly sum, because that doesn't indicate how much overtime you wind up working in order to make ends meet.
Your actual hourly wage.
The thing is, I don't believe people out there understand just how prevalent wage slavery is. Yes, it's known that there is general discontent... but I don't think people are getting how bad it is out there.
Imagine how someone who makes six figures a year would respond if they went around, doing their errands, and they saw all these signs with figures like $8.50/hr, $9.75/hr or even waitstaff wages like $4.50/hr. And these people aren't stupid. They know what the cost of living is like in their cities. They will be forced to stop and consider: "How is it possible that someone can make ends meet with so little?" And, "How can these people be making so little when I'm paying such a premium for these goods/services?" Yes, where *is* your money going?
A meal or two at a McDonald's easily covers one person's wages for an hour. A single lunch or dinner rush is enough to cover the entire crew's wages for the day. So where is the rest of the money going? It sure as hell ain't the cost of the food - that's pennies on the dollar.
So why don't we force people to confront the question: where *is* their money going?
This is kinda crazy, but I got to thinking about how often managers will tell us not to discuss how much we're paid among our fellow coworkers. This is supposedly to keep workplace conflicts to a minimum, but as some have pointed out, it's really to keep people from having an excuse to demand raises.
So.
What if we just put it out in the open?
For everyone to see.
Literally.
Not just your coworkers, but your customers as well.
Hang a sign around your neck that shows what your company pays you. Not a weekly or monthly sum, because that doesn't indicate how much overtime you wind up working in order to make ends meet.
Your actual hourly wage.
The thing is, I don't believe people out there understand just how prevalent wage slavery is. Yes, it's known that there is general discontent... but I don't think people are getting how bad it is out there.
Imagine how someone who makes six figures a year would respond if they went around, doing their errands, and they saw all these signs with figures like $8.50/hr, $9.75/hr or even waitstaff wages like $4.50/hr. And these people aren't stupid. They know what the cost of living is like in their cities. They will be forced to stop and consider: "How is it possible that someone can make ends meet with so little?" And, "How can these people be making so little when I'm paying such a premium for these goods/services?" Yes, where *is* your money going?
A meal or two at a McDonald's easily covers one person's wages for an hour. A single lunch or dinner rush is enough to cover the entire crew's wages for the day. So where is the rest of the money going? It sure as hell ain't the cost of the food - that's pennies on the dollar.
So why don't we force people to confront the question: where *is* their money going?