Why do people not want to work?

[3Ts]

Many people on here tout up work ethic, and shame people like me that have retired early, yet when they get to be 70 years old, they look back on all those years away from the people they love and wonder why they were always at work?

This is very true!

 

[check]

Seeing these every where.
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Yup, here too. They say there is a labour shortage, but in my view what is really happening is that they can't find people who are willing to be exploited for such low-end wages. When we raised the minimum wage here in Ontario there was of course a big debate and a lot of doomsaying about how small businesses were going to fold as a result, which didn't really happen. IMHO the underlying problem is that businesses had been exploiting (usually young people) for so long that, in a competitive market, some (many?) businesses were surviving on such a razor's edge of profitability that they had no cushion for higher wages. Well, in our free-market economy you have to be able to compete against rivals, so if those businesses go under then the concept of "survival of the fittest" is simply operating as it should. Raise your wages and the labour shortage problem goes away.

Back when I was a kid, I could have worked at a summer job for maybe $1.50 or $2.00 an hour flipping burgers, and many of my friends did. But instead I got a job as a (unionized) labourer for $4.40 an hour plus 10% holiday pay, with double for overtime. Went back to school in the Fall with a pocketful of cash, while my friends were broke. The work was hard, and you would be fired if you showed up late 10 minutes for work twice, but the pay was super, and I was in top physical condition from all the physical labour.

 

[two_bit_score]

Thanks, but it is not glamourous.

But that is the really sad thing. Many people on here tout up work ethic, and shame people like me that have retired early, yet when they get to be 70 years old, they look back on all those years away from the people they love and wonder why they were always at work? No thank you! I will gladly make deep sacrifices so I can work for, and work around, my family. That is not laziness; that is working hard for the things that matter.

This Tiny House will be nice in a few years. In the meantime, I will be around my wife and children as I fix it up. I call that a win-win, even if it comes disguised as a humble abode.

I admire your choice of priorities!


We live simply. Older home we have had paid off for over 25 years. Just renting from the government in property taxes now.

We have one house that is over 100 years old still in the family. Wife still owns her childhood home. We are blessed!

 

[2LaneCruzer]

We had people in an hourly paid mechanic shop I worked in that we told to sit there and not touch anything or we would kick their asses. It was easier to have them sit around and ride other people's tickets than to fix their f ups.

They should have been fired...............

How do you fire someone from life?

Well, I guess that's not Christian.

My Dad worked in construction, most of his life as a superintendent; managing aggregate/sand plants and road construction jobs. He was partially disabled by an injury to his foot at age 55, and later took a job as an office manager for large city street department. He told me he was amazed at the incompetency of some of the equipment operators. He said he reported to the director, that these guys operating heavy equipment like graders couldn't even read a grade stake, but were trying to build and repair roads. The Directors said something to the effect that "Well, these men need to work somewhere". End of story.

 

[Industrial Toys]

I really can't say I have ever met any older workaholics who lamented not having spent more time with family.

 

[goeduck]

Why is that a surprise? The modern way. Take all you can. Do whatever it takes to get ahead and get more.

Huh? Take all you can? What about GIVE all you can? Did I miss something here?

 

[the old grind]

Huh? Take all you can? What about GIVE all you can? Did I miss something here?

- Sarcasm vs declaration of principal?

- Topical reference, AKA Response to thread title, AKA whom we're discussing ..?

- Someone else's perspective?

btw, that ugly gray just wants to show up and ruin every black & white party. Not here, but ...

 

[Industrial Toys]

It's all about the middle road. Moderation in everything. A man living to give everything is also a life wasted and just another lesson. For a man must look after himself first, and have respect for himself, otherwise no one else will either.

 

[2LaneCruzer]

I really can't say I have ever met any older workaholics who lamented not having spent more time with family.

On the other hand, I have never seen a gravestone with the words "wish I had spent more time at work". I have known a few individuals who worked all the time so they wouldn't have to go home though. Kinda like the guy who took his wife with him everywhere he went, just so he wouldn't have to kiss her goodbye.

 

[Industrial Toys]

There is a young guy here at the local pit that drives an enourmous Loader. Much of the time his GF or wife is with him. I haven't figured out if that is cute or needy. Certainly not something you see often.

I guess if a person is working long hours or away from home and misses their loved ones, they could have regrets later. If they don't now, they probably won't later. Some of the best relationships are those where people are mostly apart. Absense making the heart grow fonder and all that. Being together is often just another habit. I cherish my space, privacy and quiet environment.