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Port workers are physical laborers and therefore in our popular culture are perceived as stupid. Humans of lesser value. This inherent bias exists in all of us

Port workers are physical laborers and therefore in our popular culture are perceived as stupid. Humans of lesser value. This inherent bias exists in all of us, whether we admit it or not. That's why we view knowledge workers getting paid more than they deserve in a MUCH different light than physical laborers getting paid more than they deserve.

hackable_sand 2y ago
Bro you need help
- consteval 2y ago
  I'm speaking to cultural biases in the west, I'm not speaking from a personal perspective. Physical laborers are percieved as humans of lesser value, and that's why the bar or standard for what is mistreatment of them is much higher. We do the same with, for example, prisoners. They are humans of lesser value, so the standard for mistreatment is really high. We can force them to work, physically hurt them, starve them a bit, and the average person doesn't care. We have to do something really bad for people to start caring. That's why your office worker can take a 15-minute walk and nobody bats an eye. But the grocery store cashier wants to sit down, and millions of people lose their mind.
  - hackable_sand 2y ago
    You speak your truth. Don't speak for me. Rude as fuck.
    - consteval 2y ago
      I don't think you understand what culture means. When I'm saying it's the culture of the west to put down physical laborers, that doesn't mean I think YOU PERSONALLY do that. I really didn't think this is the type of thing that needed to be explained on hackernews of all places, but here we are. Try to keep up.
johnnyanmac 2y ago
Sad but true. Definitely a lot of elitism here as well as anti-union. I'd happily remain on my butt at a computer even if the trades started making double my salary. They are sacrificing their bodies for this theoretical higher wage. They deserve it in my eyes. But of course, that's not how a lot of "smart people" think. "I can life boxes, why are they paid more"? Big difference between lifting a box, and lifting boxes for 20,000+hours for a part of a career. Life is short as is, I will try to make the best of it.
- SR2Z 2y ago
  Again, my complaint isn't the pay. My complaint is the automation. They can fight for a huge raise! That's good, because it will make it very profitable to just automate things. Of course they know this and that's why they wanna ban automation
SR2Z 2y ago
This strike is about automation, not pay. US ports are some of the least efficient in the world because of these unions and how effectively they've opposed automation. If dock workers strike for higher pay? Fine. Pay them and then automate their jobs. If they strike for automation? They get no sympathy from me. The costs of NOT automating the docks are paid for by all of us.

hackable_sand 2y ago

Bro you need help

consteval 2y ago
I'm speaking to cultural biases in the west, I'm not speaking from a personal perspective. Physical laborers are percieved as humans of lesser value, and that's why the bar or standard for what is mistreatment of them is much higher. We do the same with, for example, prisoners. They are humans of lesser value, so the standard for mistreatment is really high. We can force them to work, physically hurt them, starve them a bit, and the average person doesn't care. We have to do something really bad for people to start caring. That's why your office worker can take a 15-minute walk and nobody bats an eye. But the grocery store cashier wants to sit down, and millions of people lose their mind.
- hackable_sand 2y ago
  You speak your truth. Don't speak for me. Rude as fuck.
  - consteval 2y ago
    I don't think you understand what culture means. When I'm saying it's the culture of the west to put down physical laborers, that doesn't mean I think YOU PERSONALLY do that. I really didn't think this is the type of thing that needed to be explained on hackernews of all places, but here we are. Try to keep up.

johnnyanmac 2y ago

Sad but true. Definitely a lot of elitism here as well as anti-union. I'd happily remain on my butt at a computer even if the trades started making double my salary. They are sacrificing their bodies for this theoretical higher wage. They deserve it in my eyes. But of course, that's not how a lot of "smart people" think. "I can life boxes, why are they paid more"? Big difference between lifting a box, and lifting boxes for 20,000+hours for a part of a career. Life is short as is, I will try to make the best of it.

SR2Z 2y ago
Again, my complaint isn't the pay. My complaint is the automation. They can fight for a huge raise! That's good, because it will make it very profitable to just automate things. Of course they know this and that's why they wanna ban automation

SR2Z 2y ago

This strike is about automation, not pay. US ports are some of the least efficient in the world because of these unions and how effectively they've opposed automation. If dock workers strike for higher pay? Fine. Pay them and then automate their jobs. If they strike for automation? They get no sympathy from me. The costs of NOT automating the docks are paid for by all of us.