Is The Work Ethic Dead?

Am i alone in thinking that the work ethic of modern society has died? When i started work i hated my first job, but i still did it to the best of my ability, this lead to promotion, i worked above and beyond what was needed. I took absolute pride in doing whatever job i had to the best standard so i could feel pride in what i did.

So i have to ask, has the work ethic died? Has the modern workforce given up on the idea of doing their best? I think most people try to coast in their jobs and then complain when they don't get anywhere. I'm very tired of these people. They do the absolute minimum, they relax and mess around. I know many peopel may think they're doing the best they can, but quite honestly this often isn't the truth.

I think this also is sent out at the jobless. I know some people are unlucky and get made redundant in this unfortunate time. However some choose to be jobless because they cannot be bothered to work. It seems we have an age of entitlement, people who think they can do nothing and get everything.

Does anyone else think this?

[edit on 29-10-2008 by ImaginaryReality1984]

reply to post by ImaginaryReality1984


Not dead,just very very sick.Maybe we should all go on the public dole and acheive true equality!

Originally posted by daddyroo45
Not dead,just very very sick.Maybe we should all go on the public dole and acheive true equality!

I truly hope that was sarcasm, public dole isn't equality because you will always have the rich. Only the desperate go on dole, the desperate or the lazy.

[edit on 29-10-2008 by ImaginaryReality1984]

Definitely not dead.

However, doesn't seem to "right' and "equitable" for hard-working Americans to redistribute their earnings into a $700 billion bailout for financial institutions, banks, and investement firms because they mishandled their money and practiced awful business practice.

Nobody is bailing out the working guy...just the fat-cat rich dude already in power.

Cynical, yes. Lazy and dead, nah.

absolutely - you're not alone!

clock in, perform the absolute bare minimum of work to get your pay, complain about the job, clock out, and come back and do it all over again the next day...

make sure though, to do as little as you possibly can, because as long as you perform the basic task, then no one can say you didn't do it - it's the American way..

here's a great thread about work vs. worship:
www.belowtopsecret.com...

think about it - we mostly praise our Divine Creator for maybe a couple hours, one day a week, yet we get up like clockwork for at least 5 days a week and go to work religiously to satisfy our material needs. can't you see how blasphemous this would appear to an outsider?? we're worked to death!

how can i have pride in a job that garnishes 1/3 of my yearly wages for taxes for a government i despise in the first place?! i don't appreciate working for free!! ...unless it's helping others out - then that's the only time i take pride in my work!

Service-to-Others is the key!!!

This is a cultural issue rather than a human one. Western cultures tend to have a more lax view of work, but there are also cultures who are downright obsessive about it, to the point of it becoming detrimental to their societies. I think we're just used to a comfortable life, easy and quick satisfaction, and toiling away at anything just doesn't suit our modus operandi.

reply to post by ImaginaryReality1984


Sarcasm yes.I'm just sick of all the idoicy that is displayed here.

reply to post by adrenochrome


Hey hang on, lets not go bringing a god into this.

This isn't about serving the "man" or anything else. This is about the lazyness that has swept our society. Obese people using motorised scooters, people doing the bare minimum at work, people generally just not wanting to do anything at all.

Working harder at work tends to bring benefits, i know that for a fact from experience. I'm just saddened at my fellow mans lack of effort in life. Not just work but life in general. People don't want to work, they don't want sore muscles and aching joints, they just want to sit at home, all dayd every day, playing on their xbox.

I'm just tired of it.

well i know my work ethic is dead. it's just that i have things i would rather be doing. i want to go home and drink beer and play guitar all day. is that so bad?

i think there should be a 4 hour workday. business is taken way too seriously.

reply to post by daddyroo45


Then make you point more eloquintly, everyone can be sarcastic.

Not a one liner.

I work mostly in oil refineries and construction related to oil production. In my line of work there simply isn`t any incentive to work hard. You see, I am employed by contractors through my union. My wage is a set rate and no amount of work will change that. The only thing I can do is try to work harder to become a foremen, this incurs a raise of 10%. Considering the amount of hassle it is to be a foremen, it isn`t worth it. Besides, these jobs are usually reserved for baglickers or somebody`s son, or whatever. If I work harder than I have to, I am simply finishing the job quicker and therefore working myself out of a job.

to Bag Lickers you make me

edited to add
I have never in my life recieved a raise that wasn`t gauranteed to me by a collective agreement.

[edit on 29-10-2008 by red_leader]

Originally posted by ImaginaryReality1984

So i have to ask, has the work ethic died? Has the modern workforce given up on the idea of doing their best? I think most people try to coast in their jobs and then complain when they don't get anywhere. I'm very tired of these people. They do the absolute minimum, they relax and mess around. I know many peopel may think they're doing the best they can, but quite honestly this often isn't the truth.

I think people are working more hours since my parents time, (here in the US anyway) but I agree that they are less enthusiastic about it. However, since companies no longer provide security here, or health benefits that are affordable, and since they do not demonstrate loyalty to the employee, I can certainly see why so many employees hold their jobs and employers in disdain.

No one I know who works for a truly good company that treats them well disdains their job. But most people I know dont work for companies like that. That period of history is relatively short, from the end of WWII to the 1970's ish when companies seemed to offer real opportunity and some sort of security to their employees. Things are different now. Who really expects to be able to work in the same job their whole life?

If employers want their employees to really care, they need to care about their people as well. If an employee is just a number to them, they should not be surprised that their employees consider their jobs "just a paycheck."

These are different times. If you are loyal to someone who is not loyal to you, it isnt noble. Its stupid. I personally do a good job no matter where I work, but I also think I am a little stupid for doing so. I have never had a company I worked for yet care about me as a person. I understand why the people in their early 20's today dont give a damn. I think they are behaving just like their governments and business leaders.

[edit on 29-10-2008 by Illusionsaregrander]

reply to post by red_leader


Bag lickers? You miss the point. To do the best at my job, finish it faster than anyone, do it better than anyone, gave me a sense of pride. That is what i mean by work ethic.

reply to post by Illusionsaregrander


I bring this up becuase when i had my own business and started emplying people i found many were unwilling to do the job i had been doing for years. Two years i had been servicing systems and when i employed someone i found they took twice as long, did less quality work and in the end i had to do it myself. I went through 4 employees before finding a good one.

Many of them fixed the basic computer needs and left it, instead of going the extra mile and making it secure. I think that is what has led the the current computer breaches in the UK for a start.

Because of the type of dirty work that I do, there isn`t any inherent pride to be gotten from it. My work to me is a function of life: I need to eat, so I work. I take pride in things outside of work- like building my truck or keeping my own home in good shape.

reply to post by ImaginaryReality1984


Sorry your emminence I meant no disrespect.I will try harder to become more eloquent and more verbose.I made the mistake of assuming that the average intelligence would see the sarcasm,I will try to be less obtuse.

Originally posted by Illusionsaregrander
These are different times. If you are loyal to someone who is not loyal to you, it isnt noble. Its stupid. I personally do a good job no matter where I work, but I also think I am a little stupid for doing so.

Hey, you said everything I was going to say! No loyalty from companies, no retirement, often hardly any healthcare, no security, plus very little time off for most Americans.

Since the Europeans often love to hate on Americans lately, it should make them happy to learn that while many European companies offer several weeks of vacation and several holidays each year, most Americans get 10 days vacation and 5 holidays off, period.

I have played the fool and been way way to loyal to companies that screwed me over as a result (nepotism and such). These days I fully realize that loyalty is about "what they are doing for me TODAY and vice versa". Nothing more.

Originally posted by daddyroo45
reply to post by ImaginaryReality1984

 

Sorry your emminence I meant no disrespect.I will try harder to become more eloquent and more verbose.I made the mistake of assuming that the average intelligence would see the sarcasm,I will try to be less obtuse.

That wasn't what i meant, i meant you to more fully explain your point. I did not mean it in any negative way, i just wanted a better response than simple sarcasm. Is that really so much to ask?

reply to post by Sonya610


Yup thats why labour needs to be organized, so that labour has more power than the employer.

To of my favourite quotes:

"Workers of the world unite"- Marx
"Organize or DIE"- Some labourer from Alberta

Work ethic and laziness do not necessarily go hand in hand. Me for instance...I will do knuckle bleeding work at home or help a friend or family member all day long. I will not complain about it, and I actually enjoy it. The outcome of this work does give me a sense of pride. A "job" on the other hand, is just a paycheck. With the way most people are treated at work, and considering low wages and minimal benefits, why care about your job, unless you are lucky enough to do something that you love. I have, in the past, worked meaningless jobs, and put a considerable amount of effort into these jobs. I went above and beyond daily. What did it get me? Nothing. If someone's life isn't in your hands, or something of that nature, then I see nothing wrong with doing what you gotta do to get by.