One thing I’ve noticed about employers is that they’re all for science, except when science contradicts capitalism. Then they become all mystical. I had a situation illustrate this particularly well with one of my many employers. Touting everything to be “evidence based,” they liked to refer to the science behind their reasoning. Then a study came out demonstrating, scientifically, that more breaks actually increase efficiency in learning and working. Suddenly silence from management. Crickets chirped. This observation was just as “evidence based” as daily operations, but it was ignored because, well, it would be giving too much to employees. You see, science that benefits the upper levels of management is one thing, but by the time it trickles down, well, you know.
American culture is based on the premise that you need to drive people to work as hard as possible. Perhaps anecdotally, the Covid-19 pandemic showed that workers at home were just as, if not more, productive than they were after enduring an often horrendous commute to get to the office. Once pandemic strictures began to lift, however, it was all “we want you back in the office.” Bosses like to look out over seas of employees in their cubicles and feel the surge of the galley master with his whip. You need to keep workers in line, you understand. That’s the way capitalism works.
I often wonder where the world would be if superpowers didn’t have cultures based on greed. One of the seven deadly sins, or capital (!) vices, the worship of personal gain stands behind capitalism as we know it. And we’ve seen the results. A shrinking middle class as those with all the wealth make plutocracy out of what was intended to be a democracy. (Of course, the wealthy founders of the country probably didn’t have a real grasp of what life was like for the poor, even at the start of things.) Capitalism is good at using aspects of all human endeavors in order to increase its reach. Science is one such tool. Religion is another. Science says more time off is good, and can increase productivity in our current world. Religion says greed is evil. These are the parts we’d like to ignore. Even the Harvard Business Review suggests a four-day work week is beneficial. Business leaders are skeptical, of course. Skepticism is one of the elements of science. And science can be very profitable, if it favors those who hold the reins of power.
