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Pseudowork
A bullshit job or pseudowork is meaningless or unnecessary wage labour which the worker is obliged to pretend to have a purpose. Polling in the United Kingdom and the Netherlands indicates that around 40% of workers consider their job to fit this description. The concept was coined by anthropologist David Graeber in a 2013 essay in Strike Magazine, ''On the Phenomenon of Bullshit Jobs'', and elaborated upon in his 2018 book ''Bullshit Jobs''. Graeber also formulated the concept of ''bullshitization'', where previously meaningful work turns into a bullshit job through corporatization, marketization or managerialism. This has been applied to academia, which Graeber and others contend has been bullshitized by the expansion of managerial roles and administrative work caused by neoliberal educational reforms, contributing to the erosion of academic freedom. __NOTOC__ See also * Boondoggle * Busywork * Critique of work * Dilbert principle * Emotional labour * Front organization * ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Refusal Of Work
Refusal of work is behavior in which a person refuses regular employment."Refusal of work means quite simply: I don't want to go to work because I prefer to sleep. But this laziness is the source of intelligence, of technology, of progress. Autonomy is the self-regulation of the social body in its independence and in its interaction with the disciplinary norm"What is the Meaning of Autonomy Today?" by Bifo As actual behavior, with or without a political or philosophical program, it has been practiced by various subcultures and individuals. It is frequently engaged in by those who critique the concept of work, and it has a long history. Radical political positions have openly advocated refusal of work. From within Marxism it has been advocated by Paul Lafargue and the Italian workerist/autonomists (e.g. Antonio Negri, Mario Tronti), the French ultra-left (e.g. Échanges et Mouvement); and within anarchism (especially Bob Black and the post-left anarchy tendency). Abolition of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wage Labour
Wage labour (also wage labor in American English), usually referred to as paid work, paid employment, or paid labour, refers to the socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer in which the worker sells their labour power under a formal or informal employment contract. These transactions usually occur in a labour market where wages or salaries are market-determined. In exchange for the money paid as wages (usual for short-term work-contracts) or salaries (in permanent employment contracts), the work product generally becomes the undifferentiated property of the employer. A wage labourer is a person whose primary means of income is from the selling of their labour in this way. Characteristics In modern mixed economies such as those of the OECD countries, it is currently the most common form of work arrangement. Although most labour is organised as per this structure, the wage work arrangements of CEOs, professional employees, and professional contract wor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Busywork
Busy work (also known as make-work and busywork) is an activity that is undertaken to pass time and stay busy but in and of itself has little or no actual value. Busy work occurs in business, military and other settings, in situations where people may be required to be present but may lack the opportunities, skills or need to do something more productive. People may engage in busy work to maintain an appearance of activity, in order to avoid criticism of being inactive or idle. Educational settings In the context of education, busy work allows students to work independently, to test their own knowledge and skills, and to practise using new skills learned in the educational setting.(1901Plans for busy work – Boston Primary Teachers' Association – Google Books/ref> It can consist of various types of schoolwork assigned by a teacher to keep students occupied with activities involving learning and cognition while the teacher focuses upon another group of students. The functional ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vacuum Activity
Vacuum activities (or vacuum behaviours) are innate, fixed action patterns (FAPs) of animal behaviour that are performed in the absence of a sign stimulus ( releaser) that normally elicit them. This type of abnormal behaviour shows that a key stimulus is not always needed to produce an activity. Vacuum activities often take place when an animal is placed in captivity and is subjected to a lack of stimuli that would normally cause a FAP. Etymology From Latin vacuum (''an empty space, void'') noun use of neuter of ''vacuus'' (''empty'') related to ''vacare'' (''be empty''). History The term was first established by the ethologist Konrad Lorenz in the 1930s after observations of a hand-raised starling. In 1937 Lorenz wrote: ''"With head and eyes the bird made a motion as though following a flying insect with its gaze; its posture tautened; it took off, snapped, returned to its perch, and with its bill performed the sideways lashing, tossing motions with which many insectivorous bi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Underemployment
Underemployment is the underuse of a worker because a job does not use the worker's skills, is part-time, or leaves the worker idle. Examples include holding a part-time job despite desiring full-time work, and overqualification, in which the employee has education, experience, or skills beyond the requirements of the job. Underemployment has been studied from a variety of perspectives, including economics, management, psychology, and sociology. In economics, for example, the term underemployment has three different distinct meanings and applications. All of the meanings involve a situation in which a person is working, unlike unemployment, where a person who is searching for work cannot find a job. All meanings involve under-utilization of labor which is missed by most official (governmental agency) definitions and measurements of unemployment. In economics, underemployment can refer to: # "Overqualification", or "overeducation", or the employment of workers with high education ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sinecure
A sinecure ( or ; from the Latin , 'without', and , 'care') is an office, carrying a salary or otherwise generating income, that requires or involves little or no responsibility, labour, or active service. The term originated in the medieval church, where it signified a post without any responsibility for the " cure areof souls", the regular liturgical and pastoral functions of a cleric, but came to be applied to any post, secular or ecclesiastical, that involved little or no actual work. Sinecures have historically provided a potent tool for governments or monarchs to distribute patronage, while recipients are able to store up titles and easy salaries. A sinecure can also be given to an individual whose primary job is in another office, but requires a sinecure title to perform that job. For example, the Government House Leader in Canada is often given a sinecure ministry position so that they may become a member of the Cabinet. Similar examples are the Lord Keeper of the Privy ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Presenteeism
Presenteeism or working while sick is the act or culture of employees continuing to work as a performative measure, despite having reduced productivity levels or negative consequences. Reduced productivity during presenteeism is often due to illness, injury, exhaustion, or other conditions, but presenteeism can also describe working while contagiously sick, which has the added risk of creating a workplace epidemic. Many different motives can lead to presenteeism.Johns, G. (2010): Presenteeism in the Workplace: A review and research agenda. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 31, 519-542. An employee may come to work because they simply need the money and cannot afford to take time off due to illness. Doctors may attend work while sick due to feelings of being irreplaceable. Additionally, one could go to work due to a love and devotion to the job; in this case, it could be considered an act of organizational citizenship and inspire admiration from colleagues. Other reasons include f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
On Bullshit
''On Bullshit'' is a 2005 book (originally a 1986 essay) by American philosopher Harry G. Frankfurt which presents a theory of bullshit that defines the concept and analyzes the applications of bullshit in the context of communication. Frankfurt determines that bullshit is speech intended to persuade without regard for truth. The liar cares about the truth and attempts to hide it; the bullshitter doesn't care if what they say is true or false, but cares only whether the listener is persuaded.''On Bullshit'' (2005), by Harry Frankfurt. p. 61. Frankfurt's philosophical analysis of bullshit has been analyzed, criticized and adopted by academics since its publication. History Frankfurt originally published the essay "On Bullshit" in the '' Raritan Quarterly Review'' journal in 1986. Nineteen years later, the essay was published as the book ''On Bullshit'' (2005), which proved popular among lay readers; the book appeared for 27 weeks on ''The New York Times'' Best Seller list, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Make-work Job
A make-work job is a job that has less immediate financial or little benefit at all to the economy than the job costs to support. It may also have no benefit. Make-work jobs are similar to workfare, but are publicly offered on the job market and have otherwise normal employment requirements (workfare jobs, in contrast, may be handed out to a randomly selected applicant or have special requirements such as continuing to search for a non-workfare job). Analysis Some consider make-work jobs to be harmful when they provide very little practical experience or training for future careers. As a part of the New Deal, the Civil Works Administration (CWA) was in 1933 created as a stopgap measure to boost the economic relief provided by the Federal Emergency Relief Administration and Public Works Administration. At its peak, the CWA employed 4,230,000 people; however, President Roosevelt was wary of the specter of corruption and accusations of boondoggling, and shut the CWA down after ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Interpassivity
Interpassivity is a term from media studies that refers to the phenomenon whereby a piece of art or technology seems to act on the audience or user's behalf; it is the opposite of interactivity. The meaning of the term was interpreted mainly (in German) by in 1996, and was quickly taken up by Slavoj Žižek. Origin of the term Pfaller picked up the term at a 1996 symposium in Linz, entitled ''Die Dinge lachen an unsere Stelle'' (trans: Things Laugh in our Place); in the same year he published an article entitled "Um die Ecke gelacht" (trans: Laughed Around the Corner) in ''Falter''. These titles refer to one of Pfaller's core examples of interpassivity, canned laughter: the laugh track laughs in the audience's place. Although Pfaller reinterpreted the term, he is openly indebted to a longer conceptual history. In his 1959-60 Seminar on ''The Ethics of Psychoanalysis'', French psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan argued that, in Greek Tragedy, the Chorus feels (emotionally) in the audience ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Front Organization
A front organization is any entity set up by and controlled by another organization, such as intelligence agencies, organized crime groups, terrorist organizations, secret societies, banned organizations, religious or political groups, advocacy groups, or corporations. Front organizations can act for the parent group without the actions being attributed to the parent group, thereby allowing them to hide certain activities from the authorities or the public. Front organizations that appear to be independent voluntary associations or charitable organizations are called front groups. In the business world, front organizations such as front companies or shell corporations are used to shield the parent company from legal liability. In international relations, a puppet state is a state which acts as a front (or surrogate) for another state. Intelligence agencies Intelligence agencies use front organizations to provide "cover", plausible occupations and means of income, for their covert ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
