An example of what is wrong with our country

STORY

For those of you too lazy to click a link and read the story, let me boil it down for you: The article discusses how women cannot say no in the workplace and expect to advance their careers. I'd go the extra step, without the Oprah prejudice towards women, and say nobody can say no and still expect to go anywhere.

I should know, it has happened to me many times. My last job was over when - after spending a month away from home already - my company "asked" me to go back to Rockville, Maryland for another 1-6 months for "training". I told them that I couldn't because I had commitments in town and I hadn't seen my wife for a month. I was told they weren't really asking and that I either had to go or submit my resignation. Being the stubborn person that I am, and believing in sticking up for yourself like I do, I resigned.

The issue is that so many companies jumped on the "work/life balance" HR bullshit buzzword bandwagon, but most of them do not have a clue what that means. To most companies, "work/life balance" means "you work for us, work is your life, don't let your personal shit disrupt the balance." They're so busy chasing the bottom line, they've forgotten that employees are actually people who should be working to live, not living to work. And the worst part is, most of the sheep in the workplace have forgotten it too, and contribute to the disaster.

I'm not that old. I don't remember when a "lunch hour" was actually a paid hour that you got for lunch. I don't remember a workplace that took care of it's employees so that they would take care of it. I do remember eating lunch on my 1/2 hour "lunch hour". I remember when working hard got you ahead, and it was OK to say no to overtime or working the weekend. In my last few jobs, people stare at me like I have 3 heads if I actually stop working to eat for a half hour, and breaks are something that you get written up for taking. And God forbid you actually would like to work less than 13-14 hours a day! The nerve of some employees! What's this hard work thing? Please, everyone knows that you just have to kiss ass and steal credit to get ahead.