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"We all spend most of our time at work -- yet, somehow, we seem to give up every right as a human being when we become employees." Workers in the IT industry p

"We all spend most of our time at work -- yet, somehow, we seem to give up every right as a human being when we become employees." Workers in the IT industry probably have the cushiest jobs in the world. You make way above minimum wage, you aren't risking your life, and your job can be done from the comfort of a heated or cooled office environment. I'm not sure what rights you think you are giving away as an employee. Employee/Employer relationships are usually legally bound by a contract. You are free to change the contract or question it before you work there. If you choose not to do this or don't want to take the time and effort into finding another job, it's no fault but your own. I think what's missing is education. Most people are so complacent, they don't want to read anything they sign and then act surprised when it contains something undesirable. I've crossed out and questioned plenty of employee contracts. Most businesses will work with you on this. I also don't know what more laws you want. As a business, you have to be so careful as to not step on someone's toes or offend them or you will find yourself in a lawsuit. Employees have nearly all the power in today's society (especially with hashtag warriors starting digital riots against companies that do any little thing they don't like), and somehow you think you need more? It just doesn't make any sense to me beyond pure greed and entitlement. "After all, we live in a time where incredible wealth is being created (it just seems to be hoarded by the 1%)" Worldwide, you are in the top 1% if you are making more than ~$30,000/year. I know the current narrative is to punish the 1% for 'hoarding' money and somehow screwing you out of your earnings, but it's just not happening.

MrTonyD 11y ago
"IT industry probably have the cushiest jobs" This isn't selfishly just about me, this is about what makes sense for our society. "Employee/Employer relationships are usually legally bound by a contract" There is a long history of contract terms being set by the more powerful party - and it is almost always workers who need the job and have less power. "it's no fault but your own" This completely ignores that opportunities are defined by our society - and the US has very low economic mobility. "what's missing is education" For over a decade education has not provided an improved salary in spite of much improved GDP. The perception of better salary has been shown to be lowered salary for the rest of society (excluding the 1% of course.) "what more laws you want" We could start by emulating other countries. Denmark workers join Unions which are funded through government. Flexcurity offsets "at will employment" with a great social safety net and free education. Corporatism creates "interest groups" which can be involved with decision-making for employers and industries. Some countries require employees on the board. Some countries only purchase from companies with transparent finances (no offshores). And these are just some techniques proven to work, there are many others which may be a good idea.
hand_of_lixue 11y ago
> I've crossed out and questioned plenty of employee contracts. Most businesses will work with you on this. I've given two weeks notice at one job, only to arrive at $new_job and discover that their $parent_company requires you to fill out a digital contract, with no room for appending it. One was smart enough to even make it so that the signature box only accepted an exact match on your name. The contract they wanted me to sign involved committing perjury on federal forms... but HR promised they would "make a note in my file" about my concern, and still expected me to digitally sign everything. Now that I'm a seasoned professional who can count on getting work elsewhere, and has some savings, I can just refuse and quit / let them fire me. As someone new coming in to the industry, though, my options were "go along with this" or "desperately hope I could line up a new job before I got evicted" (old job had already filled my position) Still a hell of a lot better than working retail or call center, but it's definitely not always as simple as "just negotiate a better contract"
Chris2048 11y ago
It's worth nothing - Even if the jobs are cushy now, there's no reason this will always be the case. If things change, we might need the protections we negotiate into normality while things were good.

MrTonyD 11y ago

"IT industry probably have the cushiest jobs" This isn't selfishly just about me, this is about what makes sense for our society. "Employee/Employer relationships are usually legally bound by a contract" There is a long history of contract terms being set by the more powerful party - and it is almost always workers who need the job and have less power. "it's no fault but your own" This completely ignores that opportunities are defined by our society - and the US has very low economic mobility. "what's missing is education" For over a decade education has not provided an improved salary in spite of much improved GDP. The perception of better salary has been shown to be lowered salary for the rest of society (excluding the 1% of course.) "what more laws you want" We could start by emulating other countries. Denmark workers join Unions which are funded through government. Flexcurity offsets "at will employment" with a great social safety net and free education. Corporatism creates "interest groups" which can be involved with decision-making for employers and industries. Some countries require employees on the board. Some countries only purchase from companies with transparent finances (no offshores). And these are just some techniques proven to work, there are many others which may be a good idea.

hand_of_lixue 11y ago

> I've crossed out and questioned plenty of employee contracts. Most businesses will work with you on this. I've given two weeks notice at one job, only to arrive at $new_job and discover that their $parent_company requires you to fill out a digital contract, with no room for appending it. One was smart enough to even make it so that the signature box only accepted an exact match on your name. The contract they wanted me to sign involved committing perjury on federal forms... but HR promised they would "make a note in my file" about my concern, and still expected me to digitally sign everything. Now that I'm a seasoned professional who can count on getting work elsewhere, and has some savings, I can just refuse and quit / let them fire me. As someone new coming in to the industry, though, my options were "go along with this" or "desperately hope I could line up a new job before I got evicted" (old job had already filled my position) Still a hell of a lot better than working retail or call center, but it's definitely not always as simple as "just negotiate a better contract"

Chris2048 11y ago

It's worth nothing - Even if the jobs are cushy now, there's no reason this will always be the case. If things change, we might need the protections we negotiate into normality while things were good.