Courtesy Flush (1000+ posts) Sun Jan-02-11 09:56 AM
Response to Original message
29. But they treat us like losers when the economy is good.
I've known people who have had benefits I can only dream of... and they are all private-sector workers. I've had friends who receive annual bonuses, matching savings plans, tickets to sporting events handed out to employees, and lengthy vacations. I get none of that. Friends with high school diplomas make more than I do in a job that requires a degree.
Those same workers probably don't have those benefits now that the economy is down, but I NEVER had them, and those guys used to look down on me like I was a minimum-wage worker because of my state job.
I have a medical plan, a pension plan, and paid holidays. That's very basic stuff, and when the economy is booming I feel like a loser for not getting what the rest of you had. But then the economy crashes, but my job doesn't change (that's the nature of state employment), suddenly they think I'm being pampered.
Newsflash, dipshit--it's called USEFUL. I have a Bachelor's, but my job only requires an Associate's. Yet I still make more than many college grads, and have healthcare benefits, 401(k), vacation (3 weeks starting this year, thanks for asking), and other options. And my job is there in good times and bad. How is that, you ask? Because I work in a field that is vital to the economy, in good times, and in bad.
But more importantly, I don't go into work each day with the attitude that I'm "fireproof". My employment, even in a union shop, is only as secure as the effort I put forth. Nobody owes me dick. If I walk in with an attitude of the company owes me just for showing up, the company will do it's best to ensure I don't show up anymore.
Or did that little concept elude you?
