Bullshit Jobs
This may be an unpopular opinion but I don&#x27;t believe BS jobs are prevalent in the private sector. Of course, bureaucracy exists, but that is hardly a new thing. There are outliers, but this is far from the pandemic presented here.<p>Some of the arguments I keep hearing:<p>1&#x2F; I don&#x27;t understand why X exists and therefore X must be a BS job. In the parent article, we read a premise that &quot;someone invented a procedure&quot;, but the author jumps into conclusion without really understanding why are employees not allowed to bring whatever chair they wish to the office. Then he jumps to another conclusion, that nobody really cares because his psychiatrist note is usually accepted. As a manager, if my subordinate asks for a special chair, I will ask him to get a doctor&#x27;s note, to see if he is serious or just bored, and to prevent all his colleagues from wanting a special chair the next day.<p>2&#x2F; &quot;There is less and less actual work to be done due to technological progress.&quot; If this was true, there would be unemployment, not BS jobs.<p>3&#x2F; &quot;There are economic incentives to create larger and larger organizations.&quot; True and totally unrelated. What is the argument?<p>4&#x2F; &quot;Managers like to have large teams.&quot; True, and economic forces push against that. This does not explain the apparent pandemic of BS jobs (that I don&#x27;t see anywhere).<p>etc.<p>If you won&#x27;t mind, I will try some anecdotal evidence and jumping to conclusions myself:<p>5&#x2F; I have not seen many - if any - BS jobs in my IT career. Sure, it would be great to reduce state regulation but the guy in my company responsible for compliance is not doing a BS job.<p>6&#x2F; Automation and technology saved us from slaving in the fields and sweatshops. Driving a truck full of confectionery across the US is pretty much a BS job if you ask me. Same as &quot;Shirley, make me 5 copies of this contract before the lunch&quot; - on a typewriter.<p>7&#x2F; BS jobs pandemics is nothing else but a variation of the &quot;Grass was greener when I was young&quot;. Developed countries (maybe with the exception of the US) have safer environments than ever, more disposable income than ever and people live longer than ever.