General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsWhy You Are Doing 'Shadow Work' for Free and Don't Even Know It
Shadow Work includes all the unpaid tasks we do on behalf of businesses and organizations every day from pumping gas to bagging groceries, said Craig Lambert, author of 'Shadow Work.' Lambert adds that the self service economy has been fueled by technology and cost cutting. He said employees often don't realize how much time and effort goes into commuting and also points out that interns are being used to push down the cost of labor. While it is too early to tell how the expansion of shadow work has affected hiring and firing, Lambert said the trend is growing and could very well create structural unemployment in some sectors.
http://www.thestreet.com/video/13152384/why-you-are-doing-shadow-work-for-free-and-dont-even-know-it.html
Video at the link.
tblue37
(65,483 posts)daredtowork
(3,732 posts)has been pushed into the job application process as well.
It's a traditional joke that job hunting is a full-time job, but for people with significant barriers to employment it is a LONG TERM full time job. This level of time and cost isn't fair, and it's literally soul-sucking when you realize how much of your life is being used up - and you aren't even being paid for it. If you never do get work, it's slavery in hindsight.
merrily
(45,251 posts)via an automated phone system that I could do with a human.
A few years back, said humans would assure me that I could have completed the same transaction by going to www.somethingorother.com/something else.
I would say I would rather do business with a human who needs a paycheck.
They would laugh and tell me not to worry-- that they had plenty to do.
Now, they don't laugh. They just very earnestly say, "Thank you."
Hissyspit
(45,788 posts)Jim Lane
(11,175 posts)laundry_queen
(8,646 posts)it also has a negative effect on GDP. All those little bits of work you do that corporations don't pay people to do anymore means they are no longer recorded as part of the economy. Yet another thing the corporations do that hurt the economy.
Oldtimeralso
(1,937 posts)Please do not use the self checkout lanes at any of the big box stores!
rpannier
(24,333 posts)I did one time like 16 years ago. Thought it was dumb and there was a problem, so someone had to come over and fix it
I thought, "Wow! What a joke."
When I'm in the states I stand in line
Funny thing is, in Korea if you use them, there is someone who stands there and helps you ring your groceries. Again I think, that is dumb
on edit: I still don't use them
tblue37
(65,483 posts)Jesus Malverde
(10,274 posts)In the states and Japan. I'd rather wait in line.
FLPanhandle
(7,107 posts)However, please don't tell me what to do.
I prefer to use self checkout lanes and not have to deal with people.
SickOfTheOnePct
(7,290 posts)I only go through the regular line if I have a cart full of stuff, which is very rare.
It's not that I don't like dealing with people in general, it's just that I've found that at my local grocery stores, most of the cashiers are more often than not so surly, I'd rather not deal with them. The ones that do provide the best service have the longest lines, and I'm not inclined to wait when I'm buying only a few things.
Arugula Latte
(50,566 posts)1939
(1,683 posts)I don't do:
Self check out lines
Drive thru at banks or eateries
ATM machines
Home delivery of pizzas or takeout
Travis_0004
(5,417 posts)All busines cost are reflected in the cost of what we buy. Lets say a business is forced to pump your gas and they hire somebody to pump your gas and charge .10 a gallon. I would argure you save .10 cents a gallon and are being paid to do the work through lower prices. On fact if it takes you 5 minutes to pump 20 gallons you are effectively making 2 dollars or 24 dollars and hour, and its untaxed.
Bluenorthwest
(45,319 posts)customer.
Travis_0004
(5,417 posts)But the price you pay reflects that employee cost, so you are paying for that service.
I never thought it was difficult to do myself.
Aerows
(39,961 posts)and for Oregon - they were the same price. Obviously California was way more expensive than either state.
I'm not sure where you are seeing that cost. Look it up for yourself.
Travis_0004
(5,417 posts)So they should be about the same.
Of course California is more expensive they higher taxes on gas and use a different blend that a lot of refineries dont bother to make, so sometimes a limited supply.
The bottom line is if you increase a business cost, the sale price of goods has to go up. More employees equals more expensive gasonline.
Aerows
(39,961 posts)And I illustrated that. Other folks illustrated that the same is true in NJ.
I realize that it is still "common knowledge" that having employees is a horrible horrible thing, but the truth is that most businesses can profit from having extra help.
I know that is anathema to some, but things that "we accept as true" aren't always true. For instance, that if we raised the minimum wage to 15/hr nobody could buy a hamburger. It's just not true.
Gormy Cuss
(30,884 posts)The price at the pump is affected by a host of factors. NJ pump prices are kept down by lower state taxes.
FLPanhandle
(7,107 posts)I'd much rather do self-checkout than deal with a check out person.
I'd rather pump my own gas than deal with an attendant.
I'd rather use a mobile phone app or website than call and speak to customer service.
MindPilot
(12,693 posts)The fewer human interactions between me and the completion of the transaction, the better.
(In my best Sheldon voice) "...and I don't like other people."
Nye Bevan
(25,406 posts)while raking in the profits from Google ads.
Jesus Malverde
(10,274 posts)And fill a site with content. Spot on.
hunter
(38,325 posts)The fossil fuel industry is very good at that game.
Fracking gas, it's natural! It's a bridge fuel!
( I heard it on NPR, it has to be true! )
It's about as dumb as Brawndo, it's got what plants crave, it's got Electrolytes!
Personally, I don't have a list of things I boycott, I boycott everything as best I'm able.
90% of everything is crap, including most jobs.
"Economic Productivity" as it is now defined is a direct measure of the damage we do to our earth's environment and the human spirit.
If we were not such busy little beavers, and we were all using birth control, this planet wouldn't be falling apart around us.
hfojvt
(37,573 posts)at least some of it
I pick up trash off the street for free - some of it
Whenever I go into a store, I like to take a cart in with me. It helps the person who is shagging the carts, and it really does not cost me anything.
Jackpine Radical
(45,274 posts)will be delivered to you by UPS. It will consist of 17 boxes of parts and complete assembly instructions.
Glassunion
(10,201 posts)Jackpine Radical
(45,274 posts)Glassunion
(10,201 posts)Should we avoid advances in technology and methods so that we can retain obsolete jobs?
Jackpine Radical
(45,274 posts)& figure out a way that permits the whole bunch of us to share in the advances we are making. If productivity has gone up, why can't wages also go up, and hours go down?