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So basically — if you're getting exploited, ignorance is bliss?

lrem 5y ago
If you're happy with what you're getting, are you being exploited? Personally: I've reached the point where I don't want to know what my colleagues make. I know many of them make significantly more, but that's fine. In some cases I'm outright happy for them.
- beebmam 5y ago
  Exploitation is a tax that your boss (and their boss) is hiding from you. Literally just taking right out of your pocket before you ever even see it, just like a gangster would do.
- spaetzleesser 5y ago
  “If you're happy with what you're getting, are you being exploited?” Yes you are exploited if you don’t know what would be possible.
lr4444lr 5y ago
No, just that a sense of happiness is a relative measure. Do you think you'd be happier earning 50K when everyone else is earning 25K, or 100K where everyone else is earning 200K? Everyone believes he is the latter, but in reality, over time, the former group people probably are happier, I wager.
- jakelazaroff 5y ago
  It’s not really about the dollar amounts. It’s the fact that my employer is using an information asymmetry to arbitrage my labor. Here’s an analogy. Say I wait tables at a restaurant. If I discover my boss has been skimming off my tips, I’m going to be upset — even if I was perfectly happy with my pay before I learned that.
  - lr4444lr 5y ago
    Not comparable. That's outright wage theft, not informational asymmetry.
    - jakelazaroff 5y ago
      What do you think wage theft is? If you’re getting paid half as much as someone else doing the same job, I’d call that “outright wage theft” too.
      - lr4444lr 5y ago
        That's a negotiation you were disadvantaged in: not something you can literally be sued for in court, and possibly even face criminal charges for.
        jakelazaroff 5y ago
        That's not really germane to the discussion though. The only reason you can be sued or charged for skimming tips is that we decided to make a law against it. It has nothing to do with whether they're comparable in a moral sense.
      - deleted 5y ago
        [deleted]

lrem 5y ago

If you're happy with what you're getting, are you being exploited? Personally: I've reached the point where I don't want to know what my colleagues make. I know many of them make significantly more, but that's fine. In some cases I'm outright happy for them.

beebmam 5y ago
Exploitation is a tax that your boss (and their boss) is hiding from you. Literally just taking right out of your pocket before you ever even see it, just like a gangster would do.
spaetzleesser 5y ago
“If you're happy with what you're getting, are you being exploited?” Yes you are exploited if you don’t know what would be possible.

lr4444lr 5y ago

No, just that a sense of happiness is a relative measure. Do you think you'd be happier earning 50K when everyone else is earning 25K, or 100K where everyone else is earning 200K? Everyone believes he is the latter, but in reality, over time, the former group people probably are happier, I wager.

jakelazaroff 5y ago
It’s not really about the dollar amounts. It’s the fact that my employer is using an information asymmetry to arbitrage my labor. Here’s an analogy. Say I wait tables at a restaurant. If I discover my boss has been skimming off my tips, I’m going to be upset — even if I was perfectly happy with my pay before I learned that.
- lr4444lr 5y ago
  Not comparable. That's outright wage theft, not informational asymmetry.
  - jakelazaroff 5y ago
    What do you think wage theft is? If you’re getting paid half as much as someone else doing the same job, I’d call that “outright wage theft” too.
    - lr4444lr 5y ago
      That's a negotiation you were disadvantaged in: not something you can literally be sued for in court, and possibly even face criminal charges for.
      - jakelazaroff 5y ago
        That's not really germane to the discussion though. The only reason you can be sued or charged for skimming tips is that we decided to make a law against it. It has nothing to do with whether they're comparable in a moral sense.
    - deleted 5y ago
      [deleted]