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This Labor Day, how would you change our work culture?

Started by Daniel Gibbons · 9 måneder dage siden

In honor of Labor Day in North America, we turn to poet Kahlil Gibran who said, “Your work is your love made visible.” But somewhere between 9 to 5 and corporate policy the love is oh-so easy to lose.

Carrie says: Equal pay for equal work: SAME QUALIFICATIONS + ... Continue reading »

49 comments

  • People should actually feel able to use the vacation time they are given. And along those same lines, the Europeans have the right idea in giving people more vacation days than most companies provide in the U.S.
  • C&D: Well put, sisters. To tie them together, male overtones in business must be softened. (A hard worker and shrewd businesswomen is a bitch. A woman who wants to take a few years out for motherhood can't get her job back. A woman who's up for a job shouldn't get it because she might have kids one day.) This is abhorrent behavior and should not be tolerated. And Europe has it right; four, five, six weeks' holiday a year, countless people working from home and help with child care costs. Finally, until universal health care is available in America, companies should be forced to provide substantial health care for ALL of their employees, not just white collar workers.
  • I think we need to recognize that workaholism is every bit as killing as alcoholism, drug, food or sex addiction. Instead people are asked and expected to work long hours and if they don't they jeopardize their careers. The impact of this on families can be devastating. Children are being raised by people other than their parents. I think this has led to an emphasis on sending children to school far too early. Instead of letting children BE children they are educated, monitored, medicated to keep them 'in line'. This denies them their unique personality and character so that we are developing 'robots'.

    So employers need to think about more than the so-called 'bottom line' and remember that they employ human beings - flawed, imperfect, wonderfully unique human beings who need every aspect of themselves nourished. They need to provide wellness days rather than 'sick' days then many people wouldn't take days off when they simply need to sleep in for a while, lay in the sun, work in their garden, walk on the beach rather than 'pretend' they are sick in order to do any or all of these things.

    We have bodies that need taking care of. We are NOT machines.
  • A definitely agree with Danielle: a 4-day week.
  • Yes! A four day week--we need an extra day to take care of personal business, even if that means sitting on the floor and counting lint balls. I think we should honor the Sabbath, no matter what religion or higher power a person chooses. Just one day--doesn't have to be Sunday--to understand the tradition of the Sabbath. The idea of at least one day of true rest is lost in this culture! I spend Sunday afternoons planning my work calendar, balancing my checkbook and paying bills, taking out the trash, etc. If I had more time during the week, I could learn how to set aside one day to do nothing and be grateful for the life I have. Something I want to work on anyway!

    Companies today see vacation time as a sign of weakness. We are made to feel guilty. I am going to take every hour afforded! It is part of my compensation!!!
  • if I could change only one thing it would be to erase the feeling of competition and scarcity between workers - for pay, for meaningful work, for jobs in general. this is what keeps us pitted against each other and divided so that we can't make large gains for all people. we fear we might lose the small piece of the pie that we've been able to get to survive; or if we haven't been able to get what we need to survive, we often fall victim to blaming immigrant workers, foreign workers (where jobs have been outsourced), etc. instead of examining the larger structure. oh, and motherhood should be recognized as work - hard work!
  • Bring back lunch hour! Stop, take time to relax, meet with friends, do a little brainstorming and networking. That's the way it's done in Europe. They think we're crazy because they get more done at lunch than we do at our desks.

    Move away from your desk, have a real meal, laugh and slow down. Get back to your job refreshed and refocused. Same time at work - more accomplished.

    That's it. I'm starting a weekly lunch group.
  • Treat the lack of respect for another person's job abuse. Eliminate forced retirement. Equal pay and treatment regardless of sex, religion, ethnic, or color differences. Raise the base wage to a livable wage. Insure and guarantee a safe work environment for all employees. Establish Omsbudsman programs to investigate, negotiate, and repair failed communications between employees, employees and bosses, and upper and lower mangement.
  • Our (North American) work culture is a product of our own making. If someone wants to work 4 days, choose to work only 4 days - but the thing is too often we want the perks without the pay. 4 day work week means fewer dollars in the bank account. Equal pay for equal work - one only gets that which one demands and will not settle for less. Using all our vacation, recognize that some jobs do not allow for the traditional vacation as the high paying jobs tend to be service/ information based jobs and the ability to transfer knowledge and information for a 3 week get away is not usually possible, so the cell phone has to go with. How often it is checked and responded to is up to each of individually. A CEO is never on vacation, even an evening out at the Opera is related to representing the company and developing relationships that will one day be used for a transaction within the company. I am no where near being a CEO but I recognize if I want that status and those perks, there is a lot that must be given up in personal freedoms. That is why I will settle for vice president some day... :)

    I have found everything my co-workers pine for in their work week is either within their control or available to them if they are willing to "pay the piper". As for the "maleness"and connotation of bitch if a shrewed business woman - I have found that language is mostly exacerbated by other women. Although I do know a few old boys here in the oil patch, they are becoming fossils.

    (side note re: European holidays - there are more days but the cell phone goes with and the overall pay is less in terms of standard of living - I know - I am over here for a year; time off for child rearing is 4 months vs 12 for Canadians - may be slightly differnt for different countries but Canadians have it really nice in some respects)

    I am definitely with Danielle on the abondonment of fluorescent lights and would like to throw out the "white noise" often piped in to offices as well.
  • I love your reply. I love my job (I teach at a community college) but outside of the classroom the politics in the office are all due to feelings of competition - wanting everybody wants things their own way instead of working together. We could all come to work with a positive attitude and work together it would produce a great place to work. It's so hard getting people to see what we have.
  • As the wife of a very hardworking man who hates his job, I'd like to see more people who throw aside the obsession with making more more more money and do what they love. If you don't enjoy your career, how can you ever be happy? More people should focus on what they enjoy and aim for that. When you have find that job, the amount of money you make is much less of an issue, I'm one of those people and rarely think about the huge paycut I took for my job.
    And I agree about the 4 day work week.
  • Shorter work week, slow down work pace. We tend to in order to keep a job these days need to eat, sleep, and breathe our work if we are in the corprate world and if not we still work at a much faster pace than that of other countries. Incorperate a more family orientated environment. My husband for our first child took a month off - he used ALL of his vacation time for it. Our second child he took 2 weeks off and the same for our 3rd... Why? Though we have FMLA, it is unpaid and our entire family suffered due to the practices that were in place at his job. Healthcare for ALL - this shouldn't matter where you work - the corner store or a bigger company. We have OK health care - major changes were made in the last contract, but we see our family who b/c they work at a gas station have very little health coverage, and some who have none, and this is the land of 'oppertunity'... Finally, all employees should have AT LEAST 1 day off per week, no matter how many parts or whatever is needed. One day that is to be spent with family. There used to be a law that noone could work on Sunday, what happened to that?
  • My dh has fallen for the same trap... With some encouragement, he is planning on leaving and taking steps now to leave his job and step into a new career. He's not only planning, but taking practical steps toward his goal.
  • How about the over all cultural view on not having a job, or measuring people by the job they have? I chose to be a mother who did not go out into the work force to pursue a career. I cooked from scrath, sewed my childrens clothes and some of my own and my husbands. I was a regular Suzy Home maker because that is what I wanted to do with my brains and skills. One day a friend of mine said to me "Colette, you have so much talent and brains you are just wasting by staying at home." Very indignantly I let her know that my boys - four of my own and two foster boys, were anything but a waste of my skills and abilities. Genetically I passed on to my birth sons those brains and talents and also taught them the skills I have with hands on training. I have sons who know how to cook, sew, clean, sing, play the piano and another instrument, be respectful of others and appreciate good hard work. I also was the Mom for many other kids in the town we lived in. Those who knew of our family knew we had an open door policy - literally- the door was never locked and my home was open for any one who needed a place to sleep, eat, wash their clothes, take a shower, some one to talk to or call and pick them up at 2 in the morning. This is who I chose to be, this is how I desired to play my role in society. Some people seem to be incapable of wrapping their mind around the concept that this is fulfilling. As for my sons, one is a medic in the Army, another a Marine Sgt. another a structural technician working on becocming and aircraft strucural engineer in the Air Force, one just graduated from College with a BA in Russian and speaks the language fluently, one foster son is in law school and the other foster son is working very hard to break the patterns of drugs, gambling, and abuse that are in his family. He is clean and has steady job and I am most proud of him because he had the biggest problems to over come.
  • I would eradicate the limiting belief that you can't make a living doing what you love.
  • I would like to see people take pride in their work. It seems that service & quality have been reduced to "good enough" instead of "excellent". It seems as if you can barely get anyone to smile, say thank you or please these days. Apathy has become the norm. Perhaps if we had better work/life balance, as suggested by all of us today, this attitude would shift?
  • Four-day work weeks, flexible hours, telecommuting where possible, longer vacations. I worked for a large company for 10 years where the benefits in this respect were great. I worked very long hours there, but in exchange, I had four weeks vacation, could get to work at 10:00, if I had to leave, it was never an issue, and they allowed telecommuting for non-managerial positions in most departments.
    Now I work in a smaller company (much closer to home which is the bonus) with very rigid rules. Two weeks vacation and you can't take it all at once; 9-5 in the office, no exceptions; and when you're needed, you are expected to work longer hours, no extra pay. However, when work is slow, you still have to be at your desk.
    Unfortunately, I think for the most part, this is still the U.S. norm, and it doesn't make much sense. We shouldn't be living to work. We should be working to live.
    If companies would consider their employees needs and adjust accordingly, they'd have much more productive, happier staffs.
  • I'd like to see traditionally women's roles valued. I am not a SAHM now but I did stay home with my daughter for her first 18 months. It was both terrifying and depressing how little I valued what that brought to the table, let alone what my husband, or even other women thought. I feel the same is true for teachers and virtually any profession that "nurturing" is part of the required skill set. I'd also like to see more companies recognize that giving their workers time for community service is far more bonding than any forced team-building experience. For myself, I work for and with my husband in an academic setting so I would like to see some job security for him and be able to get off the publish or perish roller coaster.
  • Check out the book Why Work Sucks: And How to Fix It, by Cali Ressler & Jody Thompson, and that is how I would change the culture of work in North America. Get paid for results, not TIME. Work whenever, however, wherever you want as long as you get the work done your time is your own. No meetings, no reporting every little absence or asking permission to be away from your desk - everyone is treated like an adult. Your employer doesn't own your time! I'm not affiliated with the authors in any way - I was just truly inspired by their book and their revolutionary program. Their blog is http://caliandjody.com/blog/ in case you want to check it out (again no affiliation).
    Most people that I talk to about this say "that won't work in my industry" but I think it could work in a number of industries - it just requires a complete reworking of our belief systems (i.e. we get paid for results not the hours we put at a desk).
    I have to laugh at my union's employment agreement - 99% of it is focused on time and how to account for it and 1% on results. It really shows me why my workplace is so mediocre, when all anyone cares about is face time at a desk (doesn't matter what you're doing at the desk, you just have to be present).
  • Ditto on the four day work week, and how about some compensation for the stay at home mums of the world. That too is work. Apparently in a recent study, they figure if mums were in the corporate world they would need to be paid $125,000/ year.
  • The North American work ethic makes me feel guilty if I don't work six days a week - last year went through a bad burn-out. I feel offended when I see others who are always on a day off or on vacation, and I'm expected to pick up the slack for them. I think if we had a four-day work week, it would help to alleviate this - lol - then I would only be working five days instead of six.
  • I totally agree with you -- there is always a way to achieve the culture, but most people want the benefits without the costs. My husband owns his own business, and he can't afford to pay the kind of benefits we're talking about (all that vacation, etc.) WIth health benefits and workers' comp in the state of CA, he can't even afford employees! (There is no workers' comp for a business owner.) He does what he loves, but sometimes the happiness is clouded by financial straits. I'm a freelance writer and work-at-home-mom... I had no maternity, per se! Freedom always has a price.
  • Outcome-based work environment....when you finish your work you leave...whether that takes you 10 hours or 60 hours. That would greatly contribute to MORE RESULTS & MORE WORK BEING ACCOMPLISHED!!!
    Why should I sit at work staring at the wall for 6 hours, if I'm done with all my work? I'm wasting the employers time as well as my time!!! AND we all know that TIME IS MONEY!!!!!!!!
  • For me - it would be the fact that you'd not be expected to work 45 hrs a week - even tho' you only get paid for 35.

    The other point is that based on the book"Go Put Your Strengths To WorK' - you'd be able to do what you do best and be able to say "You know - I'm weak at this skill - I'd rather not do it!" without fear of reproach or retaliation or being seen as lazy.

    Ideal World: Seen as a strength to recognize and scknowledge what you are good at - what you "authentically" and intuitively are good at!

    That would be heavenly and a relef..still looking for a boss who accepts this!?
    Cheers
    Mini!
  • How would I change our work culture? Let me count the ways...
    We work way too much in this country, so first I would shorten the number of hour we work in a week to 35 hours. We also do not get as much time off as other countries so I would increase our vacation time to at least one entire month a year for every employee. People need additional time off during the year for any number of reasons, so I propose generous time off for maternity leaves (adoption included), sick leave and time off to take care of a sick member of your family,and bereavement leave.

    I think businesses should be more sensitive to their employees needs such as healthcare, childcare and providing a place to exercise for their employees (an employee's gym). How can an employer provide all those things for their employees or why should they provide those added benefits? It is my belief that everyone would win in that kind of situation. Added production for the employer/company and peace of mind for the employees...a WIN/WIN proposition for all! Employees who have what they need to be happy and healthy are far more likely to stay with a company longer and work harder for that company as well. If companies would use the money they give their CEOs (huge salaries and bonuses) to pay for these beneficial changes for ALL employees they probably wouldn't have to find additional funding to implement these programs. And that is how I would begin to change our work culture!
  • I did not read C & D's response or any of the other responses before writing mine so I would not be influenced by them...but WOW...I couldn't believe I left out the equal pay for equal work equation, increasing the minimum wage and the hour and a half lunch break as they do in many parts of Europe...now we're talkin'!!!
  • This question sends my head spinning! Carrie & Danielle... ABSOLUTELY! I remember working for a large bank in the 24-hour customer service department and being assigned to a "task force" to find out how to improve morale and, thus, customer service. Unanimously...a 4-day work week was requested! The company response...find something else...?!?!? (Then why ask?!) But I fully support that proposition, Danielle. And, a decent maternity leave might actually suggest that family is, perhaps, at least AS important as the work machine.

    This, honestly, is a difficult answer to sum up. Outside of my current state of unemployment, I haven't taken a vacation from work for probably 3 years? Lunch breaks almost never happen until after I've been off of work. Or some 15 minute, suck-it-down attempt at "lunch". My last job had me working 50-60 hours a week for 40-hours of pay...and then tried to deny me pay when I became sick. I fought that one! I haven't had health insurance for years. Etc. So, as you can see, this is a loaded question for me.

    At the very least, can we not all agree on some type of addition of a siesta culture? A little down time for some lovely lunch, chatting with friends or family, and maybe a glass of wine, would work wonders for my productivity.

    Oh...and can we all stop feeling guilty for when we just do nothing?

    Okay...I'll stop now. ;)
  • your reply is powerful. I am a new stay-at-home mom, 25, happily married. Post pregnancy has been tough. I love being a mother, I love my the time I spend with my son. But I face this, sometimes overwhelming, pressure to go out there and be SOMEBODY. These days I think young women face the challenge of the feminine movement (going out there and taking advantage of all the possibilities we can become) and being a homemaker. That very word has made this transition that much easier for me. "Homemaker". Why is there no honor in that anymore? Why are those skills not as important as a "go-getter"? I'm learning to embrace where I'm at in my life. On a one-income budget we are striving to emphasize and teach to our children what's truly important in life. Being resourceful, family, conversation, a love and respect for nature, books instead of lots of toys. I'm embracing the duties, the cleaning, the budgeting, the cooking. And I'm reframing my words, I'm nurturing my family with food, I'm creating a clean environment where my family feels comfortable enough to relax and be themselves. I give stay-at-home mom's a standing ovation (along with the working mom's and single mom's) for trusting their own voice. For putting their heart and soul into the mission they have been given. To instill one of the great lessons of life into your children : Your greatest art should be your life. Pursue Wisdom.
  • I love how Europeans approach life and work. When work is done, it's done.
  • Work places close to home, ideally within walking/biking distance. Commuting is bad for our health (mentally and physically), it is bad for the environment, and it is bad for our communities. This is compounded by the fact that workplaces tend to cluster for efficiency (when did efficiency become more important than happiness).

    If I could change our work culture, workplaces would be scattered throughout communities. People would have more ability to work from home and from community work centers (larger companies might have their own distributed work centers while employees of smaller companies could share).

    If everyone worked from nearer to home a few days a week, it would cut down on traffic, we would be able to eat lunch with our families, and we would all be a lot less stressed. (Plus, we might have less pointless meetings if we only have face time a couple times a week.)
  • I respect stay at home mothers immensely and am considering being one when I have children, but I think the idea of explicit compensation for mothers is not really a good one. Mothers are materially compensated already because they do not have to pay for someone else to do what they are staying home to do.

    That said, I do think being a stay at home mother should count towards acquiring social security benefits.
  • Westerners are so uncivilized when it comes to working and actually, most things to do with 'living.' For example; Don't take your vacation in Paris during the month of August because the whole city pretty much shuts down then. Many European shops close for several hours for lunch and a nap. I don't recall the number of weeks vacation they're given but it's way more than 2 or 3 weeks like we start off with here in North America and both husband and wife are given generous mat leave, Now having said that, take a look at the perks and company culture at offices of 'Google.' What a dream... But, THE most important issue would definitely be, as Carrie articulated, equal pay for equal work. I am loving the new show 'Mad Men." But, it sure brings back what it was like working during that era.. I experienced some of that, during the late sixties through the nineties.. it got better, but I had to fight that 'Old Boys' Network." We have come a long way but the road is still winding.
  • How would I change our work culture?
    1. Teach everyone that what you do is not who you are. It's ok not to love what you do if you can be grateful that you are providing for your family.
    2. One year maternity leave + on-site child care.
    3. Pay teachers more (see: www.theteachersalaryproject.org).
    4. Get rid of the weird Social Security requirement that you can't work more than a certain # of hours while collecting benefits (otherwise you are hugely taxed), because our mature citizens have so much to offer society.
    5. 35-hour work week, 4 weeks of vacation
    6. Have high standards for what we do, yet be satisfied with doing less: "Quien mucho abarca, poco aprieta." (He who puts his arms around much squeezes little.)
    7. Daily yoga classes. (hey, I can dream...)
  • Carrie, who would have thought that 40+ years after the beginning of the second wave of feminism we'd still be discussing this. As a part of that beginning, I have to keep counting the gains that have been made, and gird my loins to keep it going. As a septagenarian grandmother, I'm proud of the 3 feminist men I've reared and their very accomplished women partners. PS. I've also fought for flex time, shared jobs, fair treatment for rape victims, abortion for those who chose it, and who knows how many other issues.

    Danielle, I completely agree with your push for a 4 day work week. And I gave up pantyhose in the 70's (no one seemed to notice, and I was so much more comfortable), I fought the good fight against flourescents as well with a lot less success. When I worked in an office, I took a small desk lamp and turned off the overhead lights. That helped, but in the early 80's I started my own business work. Good decision, still working.

    It's so reassuring to hear my younger sisters are keeping the second wave rolling,

    Your organizationally-impaired sister in the march toward fair, healthy play in the workplace.
  • I agree with C&D re: 4 day week and equal pay for equal work. I would add better parental leave for both moms & dads. Also, better vocational training. Bringing back jobs to our shores. Stop penalizing working immigrants, too. It would be a wonderful thing if in high school young people were given opportunities to explore vocations and maybe each 17 or 18 year old once graduated should serve our country in some beneficial way, be it armed serves or pastoral services or any kind of outreach to others who need them.
  • My in-laws have sabbath every Saturday no matter what! It is lovely to see such commitment to their faith and honoring a day of rest.
  • I agree and man its hard to do.
  • I would have loved that life! I applaud you! Being SuzyHomaker is a real art and a ministry, I believe. You should be proud of yourself, Colette!
  • Yes to most everything Danielle wrote, except the 4 day work week, although I agree with the concept behind it (living life in a well rounded manner for the good of all). I think that concept would be better served with extended maternity leave (as mentioned), longer vacation times (a la Europe), greater flexibility all around.

    On the idea of banning fluourescent lighting, I'd take it further. As an interior designer, I'm all for beautiful spaces, it enhances the soul, and I think, productivity. I have to laugh at myself when I get too carried away thinking about this, thinking of a comedy movie I once saw where Goldie Hawn played a socialite who felt her philanthropic contribution to society would be to decorate prisons. That was very funny to me, but isn't there some truth to this?

    There are few things more depressing to me than poorly maintained cubicle-style workplaces, maybe something out of a non-descript town perhaps an insurance office, where workers sit like lemmings in dull gray lighting, with beige upon dingy beige partitions separating one worker from the next, who sit on cheap task chairs with maroon or teal colored fabric (why always these 2 hideous colors?). For this reason alone, I am unable to work in corporate America, my deathly fear of being relegated to a teal-colored task chair!
  • What an overwhelming call for a work culture that nurtures LIFE, be it for parenting, for equality, for vacations or for doing what we love. I echo these sentiments.

    That's the kind of world I want to live in.

    When everyone can be supported to raise a family, be a valued member of society, take time out to rest and do work that is meaningful to them, imagine the kind of revolution that would occur! Imagine the energy as you walk through a crowd of people who are nurtured, fulfilled, relaxed and valued. Imagine the quality of relationships that might be possible in that world...

    Then we could tell our children that they can be anything they want to be, and we would mean it, because we would be living it.
  • Absolutely!
  • I agree. Vacation is a benefit- time earned to decompress and rejuvenate. When it is still expected that you take a laptop, blackberry, etc. it defeats the purpose and is work not a vacation.
  • Well put. I have recently had to admit to my own unhealthy (and very unsatisfying) work addiction. I feel as though I have been in an "abusive" relationship. I am still sorting through how to take steps to recover and rebuld in a better way-to gian back a better sense of self, self respect and joy. Certainly not there yet but hope awareness is a first big step.
  • The first step IS the biggest one - admitting one's powerlessness over the work addiction.

    May God be with you as you work the Twelve steps.
  • Minimum 3 weeks vacation per year!
    We need to be more like the Europeans where most enjoy at least 4. Although i am a small business owner who can take as much vacation as i want, i can honestly say that i would work for the same money a salaried job would pay me, even LESS, to have time off when i need / want it. I could never go back to the work force simply for the fact that i may only get 2 weeks off per year.
  • Equal pay for equal work to start. A 4 day week and telecommuting options. 30 days vacation mandatory. And yes, I agree with Danielle on maternity leave. It's ridiculous to leave your baby in 6 weeks to go back to work. Parents should be allowed to stay home for one year. Yup. One year.
  • 1. Equal pay for equal work
    2. Pay a liveable wage to everyone - especially administrative workers, janitors, etc... who do so much, and get paid very little
    3. 4 day work week - actually, this is quite easy to do; I work at a place where you work two extra hours each day during the week, and then you can take the 5th day off (I only participate in this during the summer months)
    4. ban cubicles - I don't see how companies expect anyone to be really productive when you have no privacy and can hear everything happening around you - plus, as one person already stated, they are just plain ugly
    5. invest in assessments that are designed to teach you what everyone does well, and then fashioning the work to capitalize on everyone's strengths
  • @ Danielle, I so agree with you, but I have to add 2 hour lunches with that. When employees are happy and less stressed, they perform at much higher ratios.
  • A four-day work week or every other Friday off or a 3-day weekend every month - giving people a choice to choose the schedule that works for them! Sick leave that is not grouped with vacation time so you don't force yourself to go to work when you're sick to prevent the loss of vacation time. Better lighting. Support for alternative healthcare! I spend a lot of time and money on acupuncture and health prevention that is not covered, but which keeps me more healthy and productive at work.

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