[Hidden-tech] The Other Job Fair
Aaron E-J
the at otherrealm.org
Thu Sep 26 23:26:49 UTC 2019
This discussion of the need to work for less than a fair wage got me
thinking of an idea I had a while back. The idea is a kind of 'jobs
fair' that would be open to anyone, and anyone who attended would be
either guaranteed a job or funding for a startup.The amount of time that
people spend competing for: first a college degree, then a job, then
maybe funding for a business idea, is enormous.It can often result in
needing to compromise your moral principles and spend most of your time
doing things in areas you are not passionate about. Constantly needing
to be judged and being told that you are not as good as someone else who
got the job you wanted, puts a tremendous toll on your wellbeing and
desire to interact with others.On the other side, someone looking to
hire the right person has to spend a considerable amount of time wading
through tons of applicants before eventually arriving at someone you
actually want to hire.And if you have an ounce of empathy, constantly
needing to turn people down because they are not the right fit feels
horrible.
The way I conceived of the 'job fair' working would be in two stages.
The first stage would be a sign up and stakeholder gathering phase. Job
seekers would fill out an online form detailing their skills and
interests and any ideas for solutions to unsolved problems they
had.Employers (worker coops and businesses that agree to not throw their
employees under the proverbial bus if the job does not work out) would
sign up and agree to employ people to work /with/ them and not /for/
them.Business investors and venture capitalists would sign up and work
on forming business ideas with people who do not see an existing role
with any of the existing business that are hiring.
Then the second stage would be the actual conference where everyone gets
to know each other and job seekers and job fillers seek mutual skills
and interests.The people who do not have career goals and skills in line
with those being sought, and those with business ideas they are looking
to actualize, would work with the business investors and venture
capitalists. Together, they would form new worker cooperative businesses
around the solutions previously identified in the first stage that
everyone on the table can get behind.These cooperatives would act as
holons <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holon_(philosophy)>, each
independent entities, but with the ability to utilize each other's
resources to some extent.There would also be a buffer fund established
that all the cooperatives earning a positive income would contribute to
and those needing a more income could draw from.The way the investors
would get compensated is that they would be seen as one of the
cooperatives.If the investors want to withdraw some of their investment,
their financial balance would be negative and therefore a proportion of
the buffer fund will go to them.This siphoning of money to an investor
will only continue until a previously agreed upon return on investment
is achieved or the person invests more money back into the system.
Because the contribution will only be a portion of the /profit/, if some
or all cooperatives are not earning a profit, they will not need to
contribute to the buffer.Obviously exact details will need to be worked
out when more people get involved, but that is the general way I am
envisioning the financing working. It may also make sense to involve
colleges and others in the education sphere.They could be seen as
business investors. Although they may not be providing financial
support, they can still provide significant resources and as a result
have a share of the profit.However, the exact nature of their
compensation would need to be figured out because education is rarely
easily quantifiable.
The important point in all this is that people are not competing – there
would be the explicit edict that no one is left out and no one is forced
to do things they have no desire to do (of course it may be necessary
for some people to do undesired tasks, but these tasks should be for the
purpose of fulfilling desired goals).
What do people think of this idea and is anyone interested in working on
it with me?I would not be surprised if we could get some grant funding
to get the ball rolling.
Aaron E-J
The Other Realm LLC
http://otherrealm.org
http://theotherrealm.org (Blog)
On 2019-09-26 2:30 PM, Deborah Chandler via Hidden-discuss wrote:
> Ha! Our replies came in at the same time, Todd. Are you still involved
> with the Graphic Artists Guild?
>
> Deb
>
>
> On Thu, Sep 26, 2019 at 1:56 PM Todd LeMieux <todd at toddlemieux.com
> <mailto:todd at toddlemieux.com>> wrote:
>
> Great replies, and I completely agree.
>
> I really haven’t seen this in any other industry outside of
> creative services (designers, web developers, photographers,
> musicians, etc) “contests” to get essentially free work (and
> usually underpaid, for the “winner”, if there is any payment
> involved). It’s just plain wrong.
>
> Deb, your point is a valid comparison. Imagine having a similar
> contest for bookkeeping services, or for legal representation? You
> get the point.
>
> Sincerely,
> Todd
>
> -------------------
>
> Todd M. LeMieux
> 413.237.6869
> [Graphic Design + Creative Direction]
>
> Twitter <http://twitter.com/toddmlemieux> | LinkedIn
> <https://www.linkedin.com/in/toddmlemieux/> | Facebook
> <http://www.facebook.com/toddmlemieux>
>
> Good Design Will Prevail.™ <https://www.behance.net/toddlemieux>
>
>
> On September 26, 2019 at 1:43:29 PM, Deborah Chandler via
> Hidden-discuss (hidden-discuss at lists.hidden-tech.net
> <mailto:hidden-discuss at lists.hidden-tech.net>) wrote:
>
>> Hi Jessica,
>>
>> I agree with Rich. If your business is a profit-making business
>> which offers services to help people thrive, then paying for
>> graphic design services are helping a qualified graphic designer
>> to "thrive".
>>
>> What you have proposed is called "spec work", where you are only
>> willing to pay for a "winning" design. This spec work is frowned
>> upon in the graphic design industry. Imagine you sit down at a
>> restaurant and you ask them to serve you 6 different dishes, you
>> try each one, and only pay for the one you found tasty. You would
>> never do that. Not many professions deal with this issue the way
>> creatives do. And the Graphic Artists Guild, among others, speak
>> up about it, have worked on Pricing and Ethical Guidelines (PEGS)
>> for just these types of issues, and support their members as they
>> adhere to these industry guidelines.
>>
>> You may be unaware of this issue, you may have seen other people
>> do contests like this and thought it was okay to do. But please
>> be aware that it is not accepted in our industry, and I for one,
>> kindly request that you choose to hire a qualified graphic
>> designer and negotiate fees that pay them a good rate for their
>> good work. If you are not familiar with this hiring process, how
>> to choose a qualified designer, I am sure there are many folks
>> here who can help you out with that, and some will be willing to
>> quote on your project and provide trusted advice on various
>> aspects of the process through to completion.
>>
>> Best on this project,
>> Deb
>>
>> On Fri, Sep 20, 2019 at 8:27 AM Jessica Gifford via
>> Hidden-discuss <hidden-discuss at lists.hidden-tech.net
>> <mailto:hidden-discuss at lists.hidden-tech.net>> wrote:
>>
>> Hi All,
>>
>> I'm running a design contest for the back and box of a
>> customized deck of /Connection Cards/, which are used in a
>> program that helps participants get to know new people, build
>> social connections, and develop friendships. Each card has a
>> question that participants answer as part of the program.
>> There will be a $150 prize for the winning design. You may
>> email jessica at growingwellness.life
>> <mailto:jessica at growingwellness.life> for entry guidelines.
>> Please pass along to anyone who may be interested.
>>
>> Thanks!
>> Jessica
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>>
>>
>> Jessica Gifford, LICSW
>> www.growingwellness.life
>> 413-548-4688
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
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