[heavyset_go]

People want to do meaningful work and improve their skills and lives.

However, incentives are not lined up to promote and reward this for quite a lot of people. Workers look around and see that working harder just means you get more work and maybe a pizza party. Raises don't beat inflation or are non-existent. They might be scheduled or classified in a way that makes them ineligible for health insurance. Pensions don't exist and "the market" ruined plenty of people's paths to retirement. Their free time is disrespected with inconsistent and last minute scheduling or with on-call duty. Their leaders can decide that inflation is caused by high salaries with layoffs as the solution and their employer obliges. They can work full time and still be in precarious positions when it comes to basic necessities like housing and healthcare.

I stopped at a McDonald's to use their WiFi and a group of high school kids were there, and I overheard a girl get very upset because her mom was laid off from the job she worked at since the girl was born, and can't retire, keep her health insurance or home. She was crying for her mom and herself. She yelled about how her mom worked crazy hours and put up with abuse. Then she said something to the tune of, "what's the point of giving yourself to your job if you will just be thrown out like that?" This was in a middle/upper middle class neighborhood.