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teledyn π“‚€

@scottsantens with all due respect, there is a major non-sequitor that last statement, and you know it: as a solitary no-dependents recipient of now 'sufficient' BI, my escape from greed-infested IT sweatshops was finally possible, and I jumped at the opportunity.

A Living Wage experiment in an Asian factory found most staff ran away, back home to the hills after just the first paycheque!

UBI absolutely will see people stop working at shit jobs, many of which are vital service-industry tasks.

12 comments
gnate

@teledyn
The hope, as I understand it, is that the compensation for shit jobs would rise above their currently artificially depressed state.

Don't expect a reply from OP, by the way, doesn't appear to engage on this platform.

Paxil

@gnate @teledyn 1. Some people don't deserve minimum wage.
2. We shouldn't be paying people not to work. Which one is it.?

teledyn π“‚€

@Paxil @gnate

I think I've lost your train of thought. There is some sense in paying people not to work just as we pay farmers not to grow crops and pay windfarms a premium when the wind doesn't blow.

Our way of life depends on exploitation. Has for centuries. That we say we "make money" tells a lot: making money is illegal unless you are a mint! You can only TAKE money, from future-you, from someone else, a neighbour or a third-world family, or even just a boss proxying for all three.

teledyn π“‚€

@gnate I have prior expertise with OP, but keep in mind these essential services are already straining their price point, and yes, I'd hope UBI would not be the Ontario model that clawed back any income and punished families for staying together.

There's a chance a teen might serve coffee for that same wage as always, maybe even a bit less, just for extra $, but would matrons still clean office and mall toilets? Would you?

gnate

@teledyn I guess the implicit factor in my assumptions/fantasy is that we should all be making a lot more, which would relieve the price point issue somewhat. The existence of billionaires is to the detriment of all.

teledyn π“‚€

@gnate just as profits cannot grow forever, neither can wages. I mean look at Lira Pesos and Yen! You want milk prices given in exponent notation? $2.0e06?

It's like Einstein said 80 years ago, industrial humanity produces for profit, not for use.

gnate

@teledyn I'm no economics expert (or even well-informed student), but my impression is that if wages and inflation rise together, that's a reflection of a fixed (abstract?) value. How much effect does altering extreme wealth inequality have on that dynamic?

Wealth distribution is a problem globally, of course, and quite visible in the US, with 40+ years of wage stagnation, as a constantly growing portion of wealth goes those accumulating it for its own sake.

teledyn π“‚€

@gnate I highly recommend #Piketty for a data based assessment of the past 400 years. He has a plan and it has worked before.

Another alternative is another massive war 😞

Colman Reilly

@teledyn @gnate if they’re vital they should be paid accordingly. If you can’t afford to pay them, I guess your business wasn’t viable.

And if they’re shit, maybe you’ll need to find a way to make them less shit. Decent working hours and conditions, that sort of thing.

teledyn π“‚€

@Colman @gnate

This is true. Our civilisation is not viable.

So stop moaning about its collapse πŸ˜…

Can you say "externalized costs"? And then there's #Piketty's infamous r>g

Cecelia

@teledyn @scottsantens If only there was motivation to work on solutions for getting workers out of labor-intensive jobs instead of taking artists out of creating art.

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