5 ms·

What is "the gold watch" in this context? It is, understandably, a difficult phrase to Google for! I did find this[0], which refers to it without explanation.

• themodelplumber 5y ago
  This is just my opinion: Businesses will once again normalize long-term employee care. (The US government will likely have to subsidize this or in some way incentivize it) The gold watch refers to the past standard of offering employees a gold watch upon retirement. It symbolizes stronger bonds between employer and employee. This type of thinking will come back, maybe not with a gold watch, but this type of stabilized care for the members of society and especially social circles (of which a business will be one) will return. IMO part of the driver/incentive will be a mutual fear on the part of both business and employee, causing a tight love-embrace so to speak. There are trade-offs though. For one, tech and stabilization are not known to be very good at coexisting (yet). I see the global economy coming off a local tech high, with some important lessons learned about what a business should be and how people should treat each other. Again, no crystal ball. But I believe we are right in the middle of a global psychological shift. It will take time to settle and when it does, poof, a new era.
  • tomcam 5y ago
    > This type of thinking will come back Disagree, and I hope desperately I'm wrong. The reason is simple. Here in the USA the legal environment makes it dangerous to be an employer. You can get sued for any damn thing, and some areas (such as sexual harassment or workers comp) are guilty-until-proven-innocent. On the flip side, employers have an incentive to (immorally) fire someone just before retirement so they can avoid paying a pension, should one even exist. Not sure how these things would change.
    • themodelplumber 5y ago
      The current legal environment, sure. But I think government can and will change those things, especially while holding in its hands the future of massive corporations which show themselves willing to engage with a reasonable social contract. Gov > biz is making and will continue to make a huge comeback in the US.
      • zo1 5y ago
        I'm cynical: Every one of those changes will be faught against tooth and nail by activists that will argue its an erosion of worker rights and bringing back things like sexism.
  • mdavis6890 5y ago
    Doesn't sound like you're advocating this, but anyway it always puzzles me why anybody would actually WANT "long-term employee care." I don't want that. I just want money, and I'll take care of the rest. I don't want to get married to a job or a company. I want to quit and possible start a new job as and when I like, without losing out on long-term promises of "care."
    • themodelplumber 5y ago
      Yes, I'm aware of the psychological perspective you are communicating. It's been behind the tech push. People who take this position will increasingly need to seek out direct market access during these volatile times; you may be well advised to steer clear of employee positions in large organizations. There is often a very fine line between "I don't want to be cared for" and "I don't want to care for others." It's hard to work in a place where you can't communicate A without also communicating B. The closer you are to pure-currency zones of employ, the less problematic this will be. Keep in mind it's a very strong subjective position you're communicating as well. If you want to anticipate markets, try to watch what others are actually doing & ask what they are thinking, vs. what you personally think and do. This will help you to avoid traps in mental efforts requiring prediction or speculation. Especially looking at the way your expressed position could overlap with e.g. privateer mentality. This is, and will continue to be, a rare position within organized employee ranks.
      • creato 5y ago
        > If you want to anticipate markets, try to watch what others are actually doing & ask what they are thinking, vs. what you personally think and do. Aren't you asking people to try and anticipate how their employers will fare for decades? It seems like basically the same thing and just a matter of diversification. I'd rather not have all my eggs in one basket.
        • themodelplumber 5y ago
          To clarify, that comment was rather directed toward people who write like the commenter; a huge segment of them are seeking ways to more objectively predict outcomes (this is more beneficial toward the singular monetary goal expressed above, the closer they get to the currency markets).
  • Ericson2314 5y ago
    I don't think so. Yes "we are all Japan now" rings some truth. But the salary-man dynamics you speak of think are a) somewhat culturally specific b) I expect to not hold there either. The long term trend is away from ownership to rent (or public goods). Car -> ridsehare (or public transit). Freestanding house -> apartment. Full time -> part time. Firm warehouses -> market clearinghouse (Amazon). Yes, it's a meme that's beaten to death, but it's true. Exclusivity in ownership is simply too inefficient and will be arbitraged away.
  • scubbo 5y ago
    I appreciate the explanation of that phrase - thank you!