So... two and a half weeks ago I tripped at home and broke my toe. Like really broke it, on an x-ray, requiring immobilization and rest and elevation. And my boss was a tremendous asshole about it. He was extremely angry about it, and because he can't express his anger over a legitimate medical temporary issue (which caused approximately 1 week of absence/inconvenience before I discovered a short medical boot let me move without crutches, now I'm basically back at full function) he's been taking it out on me in other ways.
This isn't just about women, or leisure, or whatever. It's about people who have power who don't want to put up with what they consider inconveniences but are really other peoples lives.
It's also not just people who have power that are the problem, it's our whole society that has been twisted to focus on an individual's worth to capital versus their inherent worth. I love the way the Gen Z anti-work movement has been surfacing just how morally egregious behavior like your boss' is. It's inhumane.
The worst part is that I am like a German shepherd, I need to be kept busy or I get destructive left to my own devices and unable to work. Left to my own devices and with properly functioning equipment, I can produce astonishing quantities of work. And he doesn't care about ANY of that if I haven't read his mind and done exactly the thing he wanted (but didn't specify) with no equipment failures or problems or anything. He doesn't care about any of the other necessary things that I do that keep things rolling. He assumes that unless he knows what people are doing, and he doesn't care to inform himself, that they aren't doing anything and are paid to do nothing.
Work, with adequate work-life balance, is good for people. It's the loss of perspective about work, that is more of a problem. I can't get behind the Gen-Z 'anti-work' movement because it's too much like my 9yo complaining that he has to empty the dishwasher AGAIN, when he just emptied it yesterday.
I'm totally with you about work being good for people! And I initially had a similar understanding of the anti-work 'movement' (substitute 5 year old not wanting to wear pants). But instead what I've found is it's an empowering place to share toxic situations and feel not-crazy for feeling awful about them. I hope you find a better place or role!
Yeah, I think you definitely hit the nail on the head on what's good about r/antiwork. It is cathartic to have a space that points out the toxicity of various aspects of working culture. Though I agree with GeekLady that some aspects of the movement seem childish; I find most of their policy-adjacent discussion to be very naive, so I'm not sure how successful they would be at any sort of real policy or organizing.
So, I really love this unofficial (maybe official) other feminists motto: "women's bodies are amazing especially when we allow them to be women's bodies." One thing I think about in the throws of first trimester nausea is this: Even though I feel like I have a three month stomach flu, there is absolutely nothing wrong with me. In fact, my body is doing exactly what it's supposed to do, and the nausea, so I'm told, is a sign of a healthy mom and a healthy baby. So, can I figure out a way not to resent this period of my pregnancy (maybe even embrace it?) and can society figure out a way to support a women's body doing the amazing thing it does?
I love viewing the conversation about the first trimester as sort of a test. If an individual can happily/comfortably weather the first trimester (at home, or at work), the society is in pretty good shape.
A few policy ideas give me some hope:
> universal, affordable, high quality childcare. It should be as easy to enroll kiddos in a high quality neighborhood preschool in the US as it is in Sweden or Finland. So stay at home parents can take that 1st trimester break!
> guaranteed basic income. Need to take three months off work? You shouldn't need to worry that you will be destitute. Also, you should feel confident that you can stay home if you want to!
> four day work week, plus flexible working hours (and ability to set hours that work rather than have them changed last minute). Folks should be able to work ~30 hours a week and make enough to live. And for folks who have shift work, shifts should be consistent and set in advance.
So... two and a half weeks ago I tripped at home and broke my toe. Like really broke it, on an x-ray, requiring immobilization and rest and elevation. And my boss was a tremendous asshole about it. He was extremely angry about it, and because he can't express his anger over a legitimate medical temporary issue (which caused approximately 1 week of absence/inconvenience before I discovered a short medical boot let me move without crutches, now I'm basically back at full function) he's been taking it out on me in other ways.
This isn't just about women, or leisure, or whatever. It's about people who have power who don't want to put up with what they consider inconveniences but are really other peoples lives.
That. is. awful.
It's also not just people who have power that are the problem, it's our whole society that has been twisted to focus on an individual's worth to capital versus their inherent worth. I love the way the Gen Z anti-work movement has been surfacing just how morally egregious behavior like your boss' is. It's inhumane.
The worst part is that I am like a German shepherd, I need to be kept busy or I get destructive left to my own devices and unable to work. Left to my own devices and with properly functioning equipment, I can produce astonishing quantities of work. And he doesn't care about ANY of that if I haven't read his mind and done exactly the thing he wanted (but didn't specify) with no equipment failures or problems or anything. He doesn't care about any of the other necessary things that I do that keep things rolling. He assumes that unless he knows what people are doing, and he doesn't care to inform himself, that they aren't doing anything and are paid to do nothing.
Work, with adequate work-life balance, is good for people. It's the loss of perspective about work, that is more of a problem. I can't get behind the Gen-Z 'anti-work' movement because it's too much like my 9yo complaining that he has to empty the dishwasher AGAIN, when he just emptied it yesterday.
I'm totally with you about work being good for people! And I initially had a similar understanding of the anti-work 'movement' (substitute 5 year old not wanting to wear pants). But instead what I've found is it's an empowering place to share toxic situations and feel not-crazy for feeling awful about them. I hope you find a better place or role!
Yeah, I think you definitely hit the nail on the head on what's good about r/antiwork. It is cathartic to have a space that points out the toxicity of various aspects of working culture. Though I agree with GeekLady that some aspects of the movement seem childish; I find most of their policy-adjacent discussion to be very naive, so I'm not sure how successful they would be at any sort of real policy or organizing.
So, I really love this unofficial (maybe official) other feminists motto: "women's bodies are amazing especially when we allow them to be women's bodies." One thing I think about in the throws of first trimester nausea is this: Even though I feel like I have a three month stomach flu, there is absolutely nothing wrong with me. In fact, my body is doing exactly what it's supposed to do, and the nausea, so I'm told, is a sign of a healthy mom and a healthy baby. So, can I figure out a way not to resent this period of my pregnancy (maybe even embrace it?) and can society figure out a way to support a women's body doing the amazing thing it does?
I love viewing the conversation about the first trimester as sort of a test. If an individual can happily/comfortably weather the first trimester (at home, or at work), the society is in pretty good shape.
A few policy ideas give me some hope:
> universal, affordable, high quality childcare. It should be as easy to enroll kiddos in a high quality neighborhood preschool in the US as it is in Sweden or Finland. So stay at home parents can take that 1st trimester break!
> guaranteed basic income. Need to take three months off work? You shouldn't need to worry that you will be destitute. Also, you should feel confident that you can stay home if you want to!
> four day work week, plus flexible working hours (and ability to set hours that work rather than have them changed last minute). Folks should be able to work ~30 hours a week and make enough to live. And for folks who have shift work, shifts should be consistent and set in advance.