SubscribeI was responding to yoink saying I'm really not "outraged" by this, by the way, when it seemed to me that there was outrage. And I'm still puzzled by the point yoink is trying to make. I wasn't attempting to "police" yoink's tone - I was attempting to figure out/ask what s/he's objecting to.Your comment pretty much entirely said "You're not saying that you're angry, but you seem so angry! Why are you so angry!"
yoink seems angry (or puzzled) that there's lots of discussion about how much to tip waiters, but little discussion on how much to tip hairdressers, cabbies, etc. But yoink also points out that many mefites have been waiters (others have chimed in to support this).That. Is. His. Point. That is what he is saying. He is saying that the jobs we have are determined at least in part by our level of institutional power. He is saying that discourse about work conditions and pay is largely dominated by the white and middle/upper class, and that issues that do not affect them directly are often excluded from that discourse in favor of "let me tell you about that couple who tipped me less than 15%! It was awful!"
Many people here are familiar with waiting tables. Many people here are apparently unfamiliar with cutting hair or bussing tables or driving cabs, so that doesn't come up.
Advocates for day laborers say these workers are among the poorest, the most vulnerable and the most stigmatized.From professors at the University of Washington:
Anti-illegal immigration activists routinely protest at the day labor sites, saying most of the men are illegal immigrants and should be deported.
In Escondido, Ramirez, who shares a two-bedroom apartment in the city with five other people to save money, said he used to get work two or three times a week.
Now, he counts himself lucky to be hired once a week. That means he has little money to spare after buying food, and none to send to his wife and 2-year-old daughter in Mexico.
Now, they say, they're lucky to get the state minimum wage of $8 an hour.
Because there is so little work, Ramirez said some day laborers are willing to accept less than the legal minimum.
"You can't be picky here," he said. "You do whatever work you can get and the employers decide how much they are going to pay."
[1]
Day laborers are exposed to numerous hazards at work, resulting in high injury rates. Multiple approaches including community based organizations which may provide some employment stability and social support for protection at work are needed to reduce occupational injury and illness risk among these vulnerable populations.From another source:
[2]
Nearly half of 2,660 day laborers participating in the survey by three universities had been underpaid – or not paid at all – in the two months before being interviewed. Forty-four percent said they were denied food, water and breaks, and 18% said they were subjected to violence by their employer.Now please, tell me again about those assholes who leave 10% tips? Because, really, your concern for the truly oppressed working man (who happens to look just like you) touches my heart.
In addition, one-fifth of the workers interviewed said they had been injured on the job in the previous year, with the majority not receiving medical care.[3]
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posted by dabitch at 10:11 AM on July 29, 2008