[mblack1968]

>Well, work conditions are worsening everywhere. Stress it our daily bread now. Stress == non alignment between responsibilities and authorities, like a dieselgate software engineer being ordered to make it, but s/he will end up the only one in court.

I was looking for this kind of statement and thank goodness I found it. I was starting to think it was just me and my angry, cynical and jaded colleagues bitching more as we get older.

Reading your statement, I am starting to digest the simple fact that our profession has gone to the dogs. There are fewer and fewer employers that understand what we do is part craft, part art, part engineering. We DO need a union. We need SOMETHING.

Here's what I am finding: the misalignment of authority and responsibility lead to being forced to do shitty work in place of long-term solid development. This then sets us up for blame when the technical debt mounts. Then WE are the ones struggling to deal with the eventual REAL outcome that leads to a boat-load of stress.

edit: While typing this reply, my friend/colleague texted me to say he is experiencing nausea and anxiety DAILY now. I know of several developers on anti-anxiety meds that they began taking within the past two years due to work stress.

[tboyd47]

How would we go about doing that? I would definitely love to form some type of programmer's union, if not to bargain collectively, at least to just share resources and be involved in setting industry wide standards.

[SFJulie]

defining what the job is.

If we are legally liable, than we must have full power on any decision that can lead us to jail.

We have to be able to justify the stuff we do.

remember we have 200 dependencies not because we love it but because we are forced into them. Yet when an incident occurs in production because of these dependencies we are sacked/sued held responsible for it.

Why we have 200 dependencies in the first place?

Because someone who never coded is hired to tell us what to do (a marketer, an «architect», a urbanist, a CTO that never coded) tell us to add these dependencies and they are not LIABLE.

But when it fails, it is our responsibility our liability. And we are thrown like kleenex. As hell if I do agree to be blamed for something I do oppose.

Yes there is this new generation of ninja rockstar coders, but I am fucking boring coder: I don't want company to sink because I cannot afford it, I want a paycheck to feed my own, I want to come back every night to see my family, and I know why I want to be conservative: because it is proven to work.

Having a profession is :

- having responsibility that fits your authority; - being paid for every hours spent to produce, including commuting for your work; - having hygienic work conditions that wont harm you (fuck crunches, open-spaces, poor chairs/lighting); - having standards in cleaning (yes cleaning is important, stuff like nice PR, documentations...); - LIABILITY we have to accept we are liable for things in exchange for authority; - ETHIC, we must have the right to refuse to code programs that in our knowledge opposes the common laws (like privacy, embezzlement, fiscal fraud, consumers rights to be informed...); - the respect of IP laws, I am bored of seeing people STEAL free/open source software and claim it is theirs, it we take part in doing so we are negating the value our very own work... - having our name granted to a creation we made...

And to make is worse, I propose that being a coder should not be related to a diploma but an apprenticeship.

I see no justifications, no evidence sustaining the idea diploma worth a bit in IT so let's drop this shit. There is a S in CS standing for Science. A corporation should help either take part in better education in university or supervise a meaningful apprenticeship based on metrics not wishful thinking.

[tboyd47]

I agree with all your points here but I was asking more about practical steps rather than ideology.

[SFJulie]

Well good news, a profession is about agreeing on a minimum platform, and this is either called ideology to harm it or a "manifesto" to make it look sensible, so I beg you humbly to call it a manifesto.

Then, I think every laws are local.

It thus mean to open local unions based on the immutability of laws that grant you power.

Than it is a classic of union: mutualize (crowfund as it is called nowadays) the costs any legal dispute than can be won on any of these points of agreement.

Each and every country have their preferred form of legal structure that helps doing so.

But thanks to the power of "global internet communication" and international convention (Bern/Geneva) regarding IP law some topics can be mutualized internationally.

It is all about creating local sections and more global chapters. So, I would strongly recommend starting it in your own neighborhood using logical synergies with other confluent interest such as "consumer unions" (like EFF) and legal expertise, public schools.

You create a section, ask money to fund lawsuit, make your adherents choose the lawsuit they agree to pick, and go head on with corporations that pick on coders. Eventually funding strikes.

then you can do PR, go to public school tell the truth about the work market (no lies), help legal system have a fair access to information, take part in benevolent action profiting your local community...

done that, been there, it is a all lot of sweat and tears. but it works.

[tboyd47]

This is awesome. I'm seriously considering doing something like this where I live. Thanks!

[SFJulie]

Oh, and people need to know they are not alone. Meetup to speak.

People don't need an union if they are happy with the situation.

But they may need first to share their concern in a place where confidentiality is granted (because we all have loyalty penalties made especially to block the possibility of sharing information). You might need a lawyer advice on how to make people able to share their mind freely.

People suffer, but they cannot talk met googlers and facebookers they were looking like citizens of former soviet countries fearing the snitches.

You will probably want a low tech organization to ensure a strong privacy of the meetups (word to mouth).

You may want people to sign anti-snitch agreement (that blocks leaks).

You will want to make all your possible to protect the confidentiality of the attendant of the meeting in early stages.