Job Snobs

THE LETTER PUBLISHED

I thought we'd gotten by this, but Colin Honeywood complains that automation of mundane tasks has hurt the average man's employment prospects. This 'sympathy' from middle class academics and other navel gazers is quite tiresome, especially for anyone who has performed one of those jobs before.

What irked me particularly about this was his lamenting the loss of menial jobs and then later complaining that the only jobs available are menial. As usual with these kinds of articles he confused his own logic.

Dear Sir,

Colin Honey states that once there were
"hundreds of people cleaning the streets and serving in shops, staffing our car
parks and serving in banks". Just a few paragraphs on, he states that the only
jobs available now are "unpleasant" or for "miserable pay". Sweeping streets or
sitting in a car park booth don't sound like dream jobs with great career paths
to me.

Does Honey really want to go back to his "good old days", when it
was impossible to get access to your money outside of business hours or to pick
up a bottle of milk after 7pm? Living standards have increased significantly in
a few decades. If the price we pay is that some retrenched professionals will
have to stack shelves at nights while they search for an appropriate job, well
so be it. Other options include saving for a rainy day, taking out insurance or
trying to keep your career dynamic and adaptable.