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Good things to think about if you work for just about any large company. Staying late is a great opportunity to meet the people who work daily for your benefit.

by ender7 15y ago

Good things to think about if you work for just about any large company. Staying late is a great opportunity to meet the people who work daily for your benefit. You might be pretty surprised with the conversations you end up having. My 2AM talks with our lab's cleaning lady were a surprisingly significant factor in successfully getting through my thesis. That said, I don't think it's unfair to pay people a standard wage for their particular job, even if others nearby are being paid more for a different job (I'm lumping various perks in with salary to form a general concept of "payment"). This does create an unfortunate sense of division between those who have them and those who don't, but then again I don't think the average janitor is really craving a daily massage. If this division truly bothers you, there are two great ways to help employees with menial jobs while maintaining a practical respect for the laws of salaries and supply and demand. First: give them healthcare. Second: help pay for their education, or the education of their children. These are far more expensive than access to the company gym, but they're also far more effective.

gtirloni 15y ago
"I don't think the average janitor is really craving a daily massage." -- He/She is a human being and has as much right as the next person to want a massage (more so because he/she does physical work). If I'm at home having a soda and the cleaning lady is in the same room, it feels awkward not to offer it to her. In this sense, the workplace is a big room with everybody in it.. it feels weird that some people have access to perks that others don't. So if I'm taking a limo home or getting a free soda and others can't... it just takes the joy of that luxury away. I would feel embarrassed about it and wouldn't want to use that benefit as often anymore. At my work we've free sodas but I've seen people looking weird at the cleaning staff for taking sodas from the fridge. Why? I don't know and it's just disgusting. Probably my mom is to blame for all of this thinking. Whenever I got a pack of Cheetos she would say "have you offered it to your friends already?". We spent most of our time at work so, for me, it feels normal to extend to it the same "rules" I've at home. By the way, I'm not saying people should have the same salary even though they do different work. Everybody should be paid according to his/her skills. What I'm talking is about the amenities that try to make the workplace a better place. They should be offered to everyone or no one.

by ender7 15y ago

gtirloni 15y ago

"I don't think the average janitor is really craving a daily massage." -- He/She is a human being and has as much right as the next person to want a massage (more so because he/she does physical work). If I'm at home having a soda and the cleaning lady is in the same room, it feels awkward not to offer it to her. In this sense, the workplace is a big room with everybody in it.. it feels weird that some people have access to perks that others don't. So if I'm taking a limo home or getting a free soda and others can't... it just takes the joy of that luxury away. I would feel embarrassed about it and wouldn't want to use that benefit as often anymore. At my work we've free sodas but I've seen people looking weird at the cleaning staff for taking sodas from the fridge. Why? I don't know and it's just disgusting. Probably my mom is to blame for all of this thinking. Whenever I got a pack of Cheetos she would say "have you offered it to your friends already?". We spent most of our time at work so, for me, it feels normal to extend to it the same "rules" I've at home. By the way, I'm not saying people should have the same salary even though they do different work. Everybody should be paid according to his/her skills. What I'm talking is about the amenities that try to make the workplace a better place. They should be offered to everyone or no one.