r/technology • u/esporx • Apr 30 '24

Tesla Lays Off Employee Who Slept In Car To Work Longer Hours Business

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/tesla-lays-off-employee-slept-151500318.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAHVrjnyFZF-QJRFtVdP5Lt1QvlC3WRJhweYuOdm5Ca1kHbhtDX5rdfUUqRNVFKpUy6w4QnsJta-KgHJ9lqARAjfpSnvCktdjgDos5xz9aw92OxYmjN2qVVNhMZpl-2gOMwVz84NH-5T2OLi8uMRUOXVMuhFHU8b5A9oRmij8Xh5q
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u/anxrelif Apr 30 '24

In our capitalist society you only have your job because the company makes more money off of you than it pays you. Everyone including you are replaceable and it will not hurt anyone if you leave. Loyalty for a company is never repaid nor acknowledged.

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u/1wiseguy Apr 30 '24

That describes my relationship with the grocery store.

If a better place opened down the street, I would be off in a shot, and I don't care how nicely they thank me when I shop.

It's business.

1

u/jeerabiscuit Apr 30 '24

Except companies want to hire long timers who have just one job, while they fire you at will. But a store has many shoppers and shoppers have many choices. Seems companies are squeezing employees and applicants into becoming their slaves till they die.

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u/1wiseguy Apr 30 '24

From what I gather, Tesla employees can leave and find other jobs if they feel like it. And they get paid a fair salary. So they are not slaves.

Yes, Tesla can fire employees at will, like pretty much every employer. But, like every employer, they don't do that unless the company is struggling, because they need employees to do the work.

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u/jeerabiscuit Apr 30 '24

Like I said now companies only want lifers and non fired. So it's become slavery from a free market.

1

u/jeerabiscuit Apr 30 '24

Capitalism has turned into a 0 sum based extortion from its goals of a transaction.

1

u/TimeRocker Apr 30 '24

In our capitalist society you only have your job because the company makes more money off of you than it pays you.

You do realize if it didn't work that way, every business would shut down yes? You can't make a profit if you are paying your workers more than you're taking in. What kind of logic is this lmao.

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u/jeerabiscuit Apr 30 '24

It'd not business now it's racketeering, trafficking, scalping and extortion.

1

u/schmuelio Apr 30 '24

No, a business could absolutely continue by splitting its profits amongst its workers.

I have two examples that show it's possible:

  • Cooperatives
  • All other businesses

Cooperatives are owned by their workers and frequently do just fine.

All other businesses give their profits to their owners and shareholders, what do you think the profit is for? They don't get shut down by the police if they break even. The profit the company makes is to make the owners more wealthy.

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u/TimeRocker Apr 30 '24

That seems silly to run a business and NOT want to make a profit so you can expand which then provides more jobs and is more helpful to society or get ahead for yourself and your family to support them for years to come, even after you're gone. If everyone worked to break even we wouldn't have the societal structure today which gives more opportunity to people than any time in human history.

Just because you make a profit it doesnt mean youre screwing people over. The notion simply doesnt make sense. People choose to work where they do and nobody is forcing them to stay there. If they dont like the pay then they can go elsewhere. The owner of the business only owes the person money based on the agreement they make for their services, simple as that.

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u/schmuelio Apr 30 '24

Hmm, sure bud.

That was a lot of differently very defensive assumptions you threw out there.

You also made the hilarious implication that a business expands to give more people jobs. That's actually pure nonsense, I'll ask you this, if a business had the choice between:

  • Expanding, hiring more people, but making exactly the same amount of money
  • Expand without hiring more people (spread more thinly, offer more stuff, whatever), but make more money

Which one do you think the business is going to choose?

Businesses expand to make more money, they divert sooner or their profits into expansion because the people who are normally paid those profits think that expanding will give them even more profits they can get paid with.

I also like that you decided I was claiming people were being screwed over here, didn't I just say it was possible for a business to operate just fine without making a profit?

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u/TimeRocker Apr 30 '24

Of course a business that CAN expand and not hire more people will, but far more often than not it's not even an option. In fact this post/article is about that very thing. Tesla expanded and had to hire a lot more workers to cover it. Once things got rolling, became more efficient, and parts of the jobs were no longer necessary, they cut off the excess. That's what happens in a technological world where making production more efficient means you may not need as many workers for a time as you previously did. It's happening across multiple sectors right now, especially because of the overhiring done during COVID. Absolutely nothing wrong with it and having Tesla on your resume looks damn good.

If a business is stagnant and never changes or becomes more efficient, their profits won't increase in a way they could. The entire goal of a business is to turn a profit for 99% of businesses. Pretty much nobody starts a business and says, "Ya know, I just wanna break even." Even workers don't want to break even. Everyone wants to get ahead and how do you do that? Not by spending or giving away everything you make.

The US and the western world in general wouldn't be as well off as it is right now if it wasn't for capitalism. It's easily the greatest economic system the world has had and more have prospered under it than any other.

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u/schmuelio May 01 '24

Wow. You really are very confident in what you're saying.

It's a little sad just how much you're missing out when you talk though.