4 ms·

“Willingly agreed” is a just a bit of a stretch here. When one party has substantial leverage over the other, consent is not really meaningful.

manigandham 8y ago
You can find another job. What leverage do they have? If you're talking about the only factory in town with jobs available to feed your family, then it would be an understandable situation but high-paying white-collar positions with these benefits and flexibility are an unimaginable luxury for most and do not qualify as any sort of forced scenario.
- throwaway2048 8y ago
  What happens when every job in your field has Mandatory Binding Arbitration in the employment contract?
  - manigandham 8y ago
    Then that would be a problem, but that's not the case. People just find it easier to claim no accountability.
    - intopieces 8y ago
      80 of the top 100 largest companies in America, including subsidiaries or related affiliates, have used arbitration agreements in connection with workplace-related disputes since 2010. These companies are the most successful, powerful companies in America, with combined annual revenues totaling over 7.6 trillion dollars according to Fortune magazine.[0] [0]http://employeerightsadvocacy.org/publications/widespread-use-of-workplace-arbitration/ http://employeerightsadvocacy.org/publications/widespread-us... You seem to be suggesting that employees put, at the top of their priorities list for where to work and how to support their families, a practice that is widespread in the industry, poorly understood by laypeople, and not predictably encountered by any particular individual, in order to live up to your standard of being 'accountable'. That is not reasonable.
      - manigandham 8y ago
        It's perfectly reasonable, but it's always easier to blame others. Who's forcing you to work at Google? That's really the only job opportunity you have? In your own link, the only relevant detail is that over half of the Fortune 100 use forced arbitration without a meaningful choice. That's bad, and I already said that it should change, but it means the other half don't have it. Also talking about companies is not the same as your entire industry, so it's not as simple as you make it sound.
        intopieces 8y ago
        Mandatory arbitration is more common in low-wage workplaces. It is also more common in industries that are disproportionately composed of women workers and in industries that are disproportionately composed of African American workers. [0] It's always easier to blame the victim than to change the system that made them a victim. The Google Employees are not just speaking for themselves: >“2019 must be the year to end a system of privatized justice that impacts over 60 million workers in the US alone.” In fact, those who are speaking out are probably the least likely to effected by forced arbitration, because arbitration is optional for FTEs @ Google [0]https://www.epi.org/publication/the-growing-use-of-mandatory-arbitration-access-to-the-courts-is-now-barred-for-more-than-60-million-american-workers/ https://www.epi.org/publication/the-growing-use-of-mandatory...

manigandham 8y ago

You can find another job. What leverage do they have? If you're talking about the only factory in town with jobs available to feed your family, then it would be an understandable situation but high-paying white-collar positions with these benefits and flexibility are an unimaginable luxury for most and do not qualify as any sort of forced scenario.

throwaway2048 8y ago
What happens when every job in your field has Mandatory Binding Arbitration in the employment contract?
- manigandham 8y ago
  Then that would be a problem, but that's not the case. People just find it easier to claim no accountability.
  - intopieces 8y ago
    80 of the top 100 largest companies in America, including subsidiaries or related affiliates, have used arbitration agreements in connection with workplace-related disputes since 2010. These companies are the most successful, powerful companies in America, with combined annual revenues totaling over 7.6 trillion dollars according to Fortune magazine.[0] [0]http://employeerightsadvocacy.org/publications/widespread-use-of-workplace-arbitration/ http://employeerightsadvocacy.org/publications/widespread-us... You seem to be suggesting that employees put, at the top of their priorities list for where to work and how to support their families, a practice that is widespread in the industry, poorly understood by laypeople, and not predictably encountered by any particular individual, in order to live up to your standard of being 'accountable'. That is not reasonable.
    - manigandham 8y ago
      It's perfectly reasonable, but it's always easier to blame others. Who's forcing you to work at Google? That's really the only job opportunity you have? In your own link, the only relevant detail is that over half of the Fortune 100 use forced arbitration without a meaningful choice. That's bad, and I already said that it should change, but it means the other half don't have it. Also talking about companies is not the same as your entire industry, so it's not as simple as you make it sound.
      - intopieces 8y ago
        Mandatory arbitration is more common in low-wage workplaces. It is also more common in industries that are disproportionately composed of women workers and in industries that are disproportionately composed of African American workers. [0] It's always easier to blame the victim than to change the system that made them a victim. The Google Employees are not just speaking for themselves: >“2019 must be the year to end a system of privatized justice that impacts over 60 million workers in the US alone.” In fact, those who are speaking out are probably the least likely to effected by forced arbitration, because arbitration is optional for FTEs @ Google [0]https://www.epi.org/publication/the-growing-use-of-mandatory-arbitration-access-to-the-courts-is-now-barred-for-more-than-60-million-american-workers/ https://www.epi.org/publication/the-growing-use-of-mandatory...