All Work and No Pay: The Great Speedup

[wakemewhenitsover]

4. Must-read article. Excellent observation about the use of the word "productivity"...

...to define the growing phenomenon of more work, same pay. Given Republicans' penchant for deceptive language, I have to wonder if incessant usage of the word "productivity" is yet another of Republicans' many planned branding schemes.

The Random House Dictionary gives 1920-1925 as the time of origin of the term "speedup". Perhaps the term became less commonly used as unions gained strength and the speedup phenomenon subsided. Well, the speedup is back, and I think it is important to inject a word into the discussion to counter the "productivity" meme.

To me, speedup sounds too friendly for what it describes; I think "overloading" is more appropriate. Either way, this article calls attention to a phenomenon that should be shouted from the rooftops until it becomes part of the national discussion.

Make sure to read the entire article and see the additional charts: fantastic, powerful stuff!

Thanks for posting, xchrom! (Can't find the "You rock!" emoticon, so I'll give you one of these , one of these , and one of these !)