Where has everyone's work ethic gone?

June 23, 2010 - PRLog -- I was wondering this because I've noticed it a lot. McDonald's, WalMart, Target, in my job, and the list goes on and on. I grew up knowing that if I wanted money - I had to WORK for it. I would rake the leaves in the backyard, pull weeds from my grandma's garden, do dinner dishes, help with laundry, and LOTS more! So, it was my choice. If I worked and made a pile of leaves for my grandpa to burn, I would get paid. If I went to the backyard and just sat there or played I didn't get paid. There was no middle ground. My family was a hardworking blue collar family! My grandma had many health issues so she was a stay at home grandma. My mom, my grandpa, my uncle, my aunt, and even my babysitter all went to work (early I might add) without complaint! Why? Because they knew if they didn't they wouldn't get paid. AND on top of that if they didn't do their job once they got there, they would be fired! I think so many people don't get fired now because of 2 reasons. One because the employers are afraid of lawsuits and the other because of the recession, they don't want to be the "bad guy." I think this has backfired on us. Why? Now people show up for work and don't have to do a lick of work or show any sign of good customer service and they still get paid! I'm sure some of our ancestors are turning over in their graves! So that brings me to my next point. If you think you can get away with it, what kind of image are you trying to portray about yourself? To me, when I pull up to the drive-thru at McDonald's and not one word is said to me, I think what a stuck-up! (And yes, I have worked in the drive-thru when I was in high school, so I know what it's like!) I wonder too, if you're in a position to deal with the public then you need to speak to them! When I go to WalMart and it takes all the cashier's energy to say "Hello" and then ring up all my items with an attitude and slamming them in the bag, I think "What in the world did I do?" Then there are those places (not dealing with the public) where one or two people do the majority of the work and everyone else just skates by and lets it happen! What kind of image are you portraying? LAZY!

Well, I've done a little research. According to wikipedia: Work ethic is a set of values based on hard work and diligence. It is also a belief in the moral benefit of work and its ability to enhance character. A work ethic may include being reliable, having initiative, or maintaining social skills. Workers exhibiting a good work ethic in theory (and ideally in practice) should be selected for better positions, more responsibility and ultimately promotion. Workers who fail to exhibit a good work ethic may be regarded as failing to provide fair value for the wage the employer is paying them and should not be promoted or placed in positions of greater responsibility.

That sounds exactly right to me! Then I read on:
"The work ethic has become obsolete. It is no longer true that producing more means working more, or that producing more will lead to a better way of life. The connection between more and better has been broken; our needs for many products and services are already more than adequately met, and many of our as-yet- unsatisfied needs will be met not by producing more, but by producing differently, producing other things, or even producing less. This is especially true as regards our needs for air, water, space, silence, beauty, time and human contact. Neither is it true any longer that the more each individual works, the better off everyone will be. The present crisis has stimulated technological change of an unprecedented scale and speed: `the micro-chip revolution'. The object and indeed the effect of this revolution has been to make rapidly increasing savings in labour, in the industrial, administrative and service sectors. Increasing production is secured in these sectors by decreasing amounts of labour. As a result, the social process of production no longer needs everyone to work in it on a full-time basis. The work ethic ceases to be viable in such a situation and workbased society is thrown into crisis." André Gorz, Critique of Economic Reason,Gallilé,1989

I found this very interesting. I now understand (not agree with) the concept of not having a strong work ethic. Some have worked hard their entire lives and not progressed up the scale. Others seemingly have everything and do nothing. So really why bother. If I'm going to get paid the same eight hours as the next guy why should I work hard. I can simply slack off, disappear, take extra breaks, and provide poor customer service AND still get paid the same! AWESOME! Well, that may be true, but I can't seem to get that instilled work ethic out of me. Plus, I really don't want people to look at me and think, "Geesh, she's really lazy." It really makes me MAD when I see someone not putting their best foot forward! My most common response when I have a bad experience with a McDonald's employee? "I'm sorry you had to work at work today!"

Ok - so I know this was a little scattered, but it's my wondering, so it's ok. My brain doesn't always communicate with my fingers! What do you think? Do you have a work ethic? Do you know someone who doesn't?

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