Shard

Jeremy Hunt says Brits need to have job pride like the Americans. Quite a good assessment by this Guardian journo, but nevertheless there does seem to be greater faith and pride in self reliance (at the bottom end) in the U.S. Are low pay Americans deluded or are Brits too cynical ?

Jeremy Hunt wants us to work harder and die younger, and have some self-respect about it | Deborah Orr | Comment is free | The Guardian

sir_eccles

Rhymes with...

FlaviusAetius

Ancient Egyptian architects and overseers had much the same attitude about the workers who built the pyramids. As for the workers, it was hard work but they took pride in the end result (those who outlived the completion of the project). In Britain, similar pride in work ethic amongst those who assembled Stonehenge.

Shard

Took pride or feared the consequences?

FlaviusAetius

I surmise that during those projects they feared the consequences. If they survived, they might have taken some consolation in their foreshortened lifespan with pride in the achievement.

Some American employers are following the techniques pioneered by the Egyptian overseers. For example, Urban Outfitters wants their office staff to "volunteer" to work 6 hours on the weekend, without pay, to help with order picking. This is to have them bond with the regulars in that department. What would be the consequences of not eagerly volunteering to do this for the good of the company?

Shard

One wonders what the Egyptians did think. It could have been shame from not being selected to join the pharoh inside on the journey to the afterlife. Hopefully it was mirth and pride on staying in this life!

I suppose it depends on how much they are paid in their office jobs.

steveq

There is extensive evidence that the builders were not slaves, but probably farmers working in periods when the land wasn't workable. There are archeological digs in the workers camps which suggest they were well looked after, in a giant job creation scheme.

Shard

Was not aware of that. A article suggests they were free, but hard labourers. Perhaps a bit like software coders today

Great Pyramid tombs unearth 'proof' workers were not slaves | World news | The Guardian

steveq

No, these guys were strictly hardware based..... Monolithic architecture

robin1234

I suspect it was a new deal, Civilian Conservation Corps type scheme. I've seen the WPA era murals in some of the post offices, and they are a lot like the hieroglyphics in the pyramids.

sir_eccles

Maybe they did it for free because pharoah said it would look great in their portfolios, get their names out there...

steveq

Well some of the DMV people probably date back from the original scheme, although I admit, a 4000 year old mummified corpse is probably quicker than they are.

FlaviusAetius

I didn't realize that the pharaohs were the forerunners of FDR, with CCC and WPA-style work programmes. Probably the artists who decorated the interiors of the pyramids were the WPA artists of their day. And the pyramids were actually government make-work to take care of unemployed shoemakers and farmers dealing with loss of their farms due to dust bowls and desertification. An early example of deficit spending to get Egypt out of a recession.

robin1234

Eleanor = Nefertiti

hoffage123

Well played, sir.