Sorry this is what you live with. Personally I’ve always been pro union because that’s how workers always got fair wages, penalty rates for unsocial hours, holidays etc. I’m not American and was appalled at conditions for restaurant workers when I visited. There’s strength in numbers. 🌺
I could add I have found service station attendants here in Western Australia are unfailingly courteous. We pump our own petrol (gas) and wash our own windscreens and pay inside. Coffee is pretty reasonable ranging from $1-$3 instead of $4.50 to $6 in a cafe. Two examples: a conversation with a young late night attendant wearing a Seik turban. Turns out he is a Master’s student studying land use and how to rehabilitate land after mining.. very interesting, then, a brief conversation with a much older man, likely a pensioner stretching his age pension with an extra Saturday shift, about 5pm, a fairly long distance from my home. He asked how I was doing today, actually meaning it. I said, “I’m content, though actually really tired.” He grinned, gave me my receipt, and said, “Drive safely, I hope you have a wonderful evening.” Kudos to all service workers. Your work and such little exchanges make the world go round. 🌺
“They” have been working for decades to discredit and dismantle unions in the United States. Several states have laws against striking, disallowing union negotiations, minimum membership percentages to force unions to dissolve. Propaganda against unions is also very common, and “they” have even created “member organizations” for people to join and get “real benefits and discounts” instead of joining the big bad union. Even in the rural manufacturing towns across America, people are anti union and it’s only hurting them.
In a previous job, the union negotiated our contracts, came to sit with members and non members in discussions with management, and gave you legal representation if it was ever necessary. They organized classes and events to support workers’ health, skills, and families. I was able to finish my degree because my union (not my employer) paid my tuition.
Yup, this happens in all work forces. What’s crazy is it doesn’t even create efficiency. In all businesses they give a small bonus to one person to push the nail into more people then those people quit and they have to hire and train new people. They end up wasting money on training and bonuses and since they never keep qualified staff they burn through the budget on the unqualified. ALL WORK FORCES.
For many years my employer offered packages to entice older people to leave. At one point, upper management bemoaned that 40% of the employees were 50 or older and opined that it would be a disaster to try to replace a large number of people retiring all at once. I thought that if that was their actual worry, it was stupid to entice people 55 and older to leave at the same time and lose the institutional memory. But it was completely obvious that what they really wanted was to get rid of the highest-salaried employees.
Fast forward--no packages for years. The organization is hurting financially. I asked about the possibility of packages and was told, "There won't be packages and there never will be again because we lost institutional memory." I bit my lip to keep from laughing. The irony; no one seems to value my observations nor opinions born from institutional memory.
But in any event, I'm staying put since there won't be a package. They could almost hire 2 new employees if they recouped my 1 salary by giving me a package. But they're too stupid to get it. Corporate managers and bean counters aren't terribly smart. Not too smart at all.
If we make it out of this shitshow, it will be a miracle and it will be despite the fact that Trump and his Republican cult caused a brain drain, destroyed education, debased the working class, starved children, denied citizens healthcare, allowed mass shootings to escalate, caused a return of horrible preventable diseases like measles, tuberculosis, Hepatitis B, and polio, and fomented a horrible moral decline.
Why have you been 10 years working in a gas station? I encourage you to take your talents and get an education or start a business rather than complain about a temporary job. Build a career. You’ve shown you have at least some initiative in starting this blog.
Christopher, thank you for the encouragement. This blog and our rebellion is the career I'm building.
But I think you've fundamentally missed the point of the article.
Your solution is an individual escape. My "getting an education" doesn't fix the problem. It just passes the nasty sponge to the next person who takes my "temporary job".
My article isn't a "complaint". It's a diagnosis of a system—The Rust (🦠)—that intentionally creates this conflict to extract wealth from its Gears (⚙️). It's a design.
The real question isn't, "Why don't I leave?" The question is, "Why have we designed a system that forces millions of people to fight over a sponge?"
My point is this: why not just move on? Or, first of all, change your perspective. You complain about a boss who is only doing what she is TOLD to do. She is being told what to do by HER bosses, in order to save money. Companies shouldn't waste customers' money. I think you would agree with that. If they do waste customers' money, customers will just go to some place where their money is treated better (ie, where they get more value for each dollar they spend). So, my question is: why CHOOSE to see it the way you see it? Why not see the good?
For example, cooking half a pizza at a time, sounds very wise actually. For 3 reasons: 1) less waste going into the landfill. 2) Fresher pizza tastes better 3) Fresher pizza is more hygienic (less time to grow bacteria). But you choose to see it as some nefarious plot cooked up by the evil corporate goons. I wonder why. Seems like you need to change your perspective.
I guess I'm not sure where the indignation comes from. What is the moral outrage of charging for cups? People don't like it, but are you saying private businesses should give stuff away for free?
Overall, I get the sense that you're playing in the dirty old pond and complaining about the murky water, the worms, the crawdads, and the weeds. What I'm saying is: stop swimming there. Just go next door to the chlorinated, public swimming pool where you can enjoy a clean swim.
In other words, gas station jobs were meant for teenagers or part-time college students. Those that stay in them for too long become jaded. Move on with your life. You've clearly got talent. Start creating value with your talent and get paid for it.
But, I think you will have to drop your negative attitude and start seeing the world in a more positive light in order to believe in yourself, to believe that you could create value. I KNOW you can create value. Do you?
Man, the dirty sponge 🧽 made me want to throw up!!! But seriously they’re trimming the fat all over, making room for AI 🤖 they’re coming for your jobs!!! Bye bye 👋 humans
"It creates a “race to the bottom” that drags down the wages and safety standards for the entire workforce..."
I was saying this exact same thing over 20 years ago and then I watched it happen to my profession in 2009 - over 50% of us architects and designers in the USA lost our jobs. Wages never recovered and careers were destroyed, including my own. And the worst part was that no one cared. Many people went back to school because they had no other choice (except to go work at a gas station) and several of my close friends and my ex (all extremely talented and intelligent people who graduated from top-tier schools as I did) were deported simply because they were there on work visas and lost their jobs.
Sadly this is nothing new, and I think it's happening all over again...
Sweetheart, put the blame where it belongs: the coyotes and cartels who enriched themselves, when, in cahoots with the corrupt politicians here & in their home countries, they promised ‘better lives’ to the desperate and aligned with bad actors to import insurgents. NOW everybody suffers!
I understand what you're saying about fear. However open borders are one of the ways that labor's power is broken, so that labor can't effectively strike. Marx pointed this out in his letter about the Irish https://monthlyreview.org/articles/marx-on-immigration/
Some people saying that they are Marxists today will try to talk about having no borders and the way the world worked before borders, but that is not a realistic approach to the world. Therefore it's not materialist. It is an approach that requires a healing or a shift in how people are, which is really the domain of religion.
Sorry this is what you live with. Personally I’ve always been pro union because that’s how workers always got fair wages, penalty rates for unsocial hours, holidays etc. I’m not American and was appalled at conditions for restaurant workers when I visited. There’s strength in numbers. 🌺
I could add I have found service station attendants here in Western Australia are unfailingly courteous. We pump our own petrol (gas) and wash our own windscreens and pay inside. Coffee is pretty reasonable ranging from $1-$3 instead of $4.50 to $6 in a cafe. Two examples: a conversation with a young late night attendant wearing a Seik turban. Turns out he is a Master’s student studying land use and how to rehabilitate land after mining.. very interesting, then, a brief conversation with a much older man, likely a pensioner stretching his age pension with an extra Saturday shift, about 5pm, a fairly long distance from my home. He asked how I was doing today, actually meaning it. I said, “I’m content, though actually really tired.” He grinned, gave me my receipt, and said, “Drive safely, I hope you have a wonderful evening.” Kudos to all service workers. Your work and such little exchanges make the world go round. 🌺
“They” have been working for decades to discredit and dismantle unions in the United States. Several states have laws against striking, disallowing union negotiations, minimum membership percentages to force unions to dissolve. Propaganda against unions is also very common, and “they” have even created “member organizations” for people to join and get “real benefits and discounts” instead of joining the big bad union. Even in the rural manufacturing towns across America, people are anti union and it’s only hurting them.
In a previous job, the union negotiated our contracts, came to sit with members and non members in discussions with management, and gave you legal representation if it was ever necessary. They organized classes and events to support workers’ health, skills, and families. I was able to finish my degree because my union (not my employer) paid my tuition.
Mm well, the power is with the people…
Yup, this happens in all work forces. What’s crazy is it doesn’t even create efficiency. In all businesses they give a small bonus to one person to push the nail into more people then those people quit and they have to hire and train new people. They end up wasting money on training and bonuses and since they never keep qualified staff they burn through the budget on the unqualified. ALL WORK FORCES.
For many years my employer offered packages to entice older people to leave. At one point, upper management bemoaned that 40% of the employees were 50 or older and opined that it would be a disaster to try to replace a large number of people retiring all at once. I thought that if that was their actual worry, it was stupid to entice people 55 and older to leave at the same time and lose the institutional memory. But it was completely obvious that what they really wanted was to get rid of the highest-salaried employees.
Fast forward--no packages for years. The organization is hurting financially. I asked about the possibility of packages and was told, "There won't be packages and there never will be again because we lost institutional memory." I bit my lip to keep from laughing. The irony; no one seems to value my observations nor opinions born from institutional memory.
But in any event, I'm staying put since there won't be a package. They could almost hire 2 new employees if they recouped my 1 salary by giving me a package. But they're too stupid to get it. Corporate managers and bean counters aren't terribly smart. Not too smart at all.
If we make it out of this shitshow, it will be a miracle and it will be despite the fact that Trump and his Republican cult caused a brain drain, destroyed education, debased the working class, starved children, denied citizens healthcare, allowed mass shootings to escalate, caused a return of horrible preventable diseases like measles, tuberculosis, Hepatitis B, and polio, and fomented a horrible moral decline.
They have to “manage” you. There are different operating systems. The question to ask is do you live in fear?
I would say only in fear of violet Pirates
That’s awesome
Odd...trying to share this but it won't let me...you must be onto something!
O.O
This is sad, and hysterical and very much how shit runs downhill. It’s the same in big corporate offices with just different toys.
Why have you been 10 years working in a gas station? I encourage you to take your talents and get an education or start a business rather than complain about a temporary job. Build a career. You’ve shown you have at least some initiative in starting this blog.
Christopher, thank you for the encouragement. This blog and our rebellion is the career I'm building.
But I think you've fundamentally missed the point of the article.
Your solution is an individual escape. My "getting an education" doesn't fix the problem. It just passes the nasty sponge to the next person who takes my "temporary job".
My article isn't a "complaint". It's a diagnosis of a system—The Rust (🦠)—that intentionally creates this conflict to extract wealth from its Gears (⚙️). It's a design.
The real question isn't, "Why don't I leave?" The question is, "Why have we designed a system that forces millions of people to fight over a sponge?"
My point is this: why not just move on? Or, first of all, change your perspective. You complain about a boss who is only doing what she is TOLD to do. She is being told what to do by HER bosses, in order to save money. Companies shouldn't waste customers' money. I think you would agree with that. If they do waste customers' money, customers will just go to some place where their money is treated better (ie, where they get more value for each dollar they spend). So, my question is: why CHOOSE to see it the way you see it? Why not see the good?
For example, cooking half a pizza at a time, sounds very wise actually. For 3 reasons: 1) less waste going into the landfill. 2) Fresher pizza tastes better 3) Fresher pizza is more hygienic (less time to grow bacteria). But you choose to see it as some nefarious plot cooked up by the evil corporate goons. I wonder why. Seems like you need to change your perspective.
I guess I'm not sure where the indignation comes from. What is the moral outrage of charging for cups? People don't like it, but are you saying private businesses should give stuff away for free?
Overall, I get the sense that you're playing in the dirty old pond and complaining about the murky water, the worms, the crawdads, and the weeds. What I'm saying is: stop swimming there. Just go next door to the chlorinated, public swimming pool where you can enjoy a clean swim.
In other words, gas station jobs were meant for teenagers or part-time college students. Those that stay in them for too long become jaded. Move on with your life. You've clearly got talent. Start creating value with your talent and get paid for it.
But, I think you will have to drop your negative attitude and start seeing the world in a more positive light in order to believe in yourself, to believe that you could create value. I KNOW you can create value. Do you?
Man, the dirty sponge 🧽 made me want to throw up!!! But seriously they’re trimming the fat all over, making room for AI 🤖 they’re coming for your jobs!!! Bye bye 👋 humans
https://substack.com/@toshyou/note/c-171541354?r=6l7547&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=notes-share-action
Brilliant!
Thanks for being there.
Exhausted in my hope
Amen, America.
This! 🙌⛓️💥❤️🇨🇦
"It creates a “race to the bottom” that drags down the wages and safety standards for the entire workforce..."
I was saying this exact same thing over 20 years ago and then I watched it happen to my profession in 2009 - over 50% of us architects and designers in the USA lost our jobs. Wages never recovered and careers were destroyed, including my own. And the worst part was that no one cared. Many people went back to school because they had no other choice (except to go work at a gas station) and several of my close friends and my ex (all extremely talented and intelligent people who graduated from top-tier schools as I did) were deported simply because they were there on work visas and lost their jobs.
Sadly this is nothing new, and I think it's happening all over again...
It’s amazing what we can learn!!
Unions Yes
Sweetheart, put the blame where it belongs: the coyotes and cartels who enriched themselves, when, in cahoots with the corrupt politicians here & in their home countries, they promised ‘better lives’ to the desperate and aligned with bad actors to import insurgents. NOW everybody suffers!
I understand what you're saying about fear. However open borders are one of the ways that labor's power is broken, so that labor can't effectively strike. Marx pointed this out in his letter about the Irish https://monthlyreview.org/articles/marx-on-immigration/
Some people saying that they are Marxists today will try to talk about having no borders and the way the world worked before borders, but that is not a realistic approach to the world. Therefore it's not materialist. It is an approach that requires a healing or a shift in how people are, which is really the domain of religion.