One component of a technological system is the system of labor. In History 341 and STS302H, we will talk about the system of labor that engineers worked under in the Apollo program. Usually students say they would not like to work under such a system. While we don't have the space race today, engineers and professionals at a number of companies work under very demanding and challenging conditions today. Last week, the New York Times ran a lengthy article on the working conditions for professionals at Amazon, saying that Amazon was conducting an experiment in how far it could push workers. Relying mainly on interviews with former workers, the article described a Darwinian, dystopian environment, where workers turned on one another, where working late into the evening and weekend was expected, and where people were regularly pushed to the brink of what they could handle. (One worker said he saw nearly every one he worked with cry at their desk at one point or another.) Jeff Bezos and other workers at Amazon have vigorously disputed this characterization, with one worker writing a lengthy refutation on LinkedIn. (It is worth noting that Bezos sent a note to his employees encouraging them to read the New York Times article.)
Perhaps the New York Times overdramatized the Amazon workplace, relying too much on people who had left Amazon. But it is indisputable the today's high-technology leaders push their workers close to the limits of human endurance. A long term (5-year) employee of SpaceX, Elon Musk's private space venture, recently described the workplace there. He said if you wanted to see your family or have hobbies, SpaceX was not the place for you. Steve Jobs was similar. A big difference between the working conditions in the Apollo program and those in today's high tech companies, is that then, the motivation was national pride. Today the motivation is the huge financial rewards--most of which will go to Bezos or Musk. There is also an intense global competition, the knowledge that there are a lot of other companies trying to do something similar.
When I worked for IBM in the 1980s, IBM was the unquestioned leader in computers and the work environment was much more relaxed. If there was an emergency, you were expected to put in whatever hours that were necessary, but otherwise, the expectations were not too high. The work hours were from 8:00 to 4:42pm, with 42 minutes for lunch. (Although people often took longer lunch breaks.) People generally did not take their work home with them after 4:42. From what I know, that attitude is completely gone at IBM today.
Perhaps the New York Times overdramatized the Amazon workplace, relying too much on people who had left Amazon. But it is indisputable the today's high-technology leaders push their workers close to the limits of human endurance. A long term (5-year) employee of SpaceX, Elon Musk's private space venture, recently described the workplace there. He said if you wanted to see your family or have hobbies, SpaceX was not the place for you. Steve Jobs was similar. A big difference between the working conditions in the Apollo program and those in today's high tech companies, is that then, the motivation was national pride. Today the motivation is the huge financial rewards--most of which will go to Bezos or Musk. There is also an intense global competition, the knowledge that there are a lot of other companies trying to do something similar.
When I worked for IBM in the 1980s, IBM was the unquestioned leader in computers and the work environment was much more relaxed. If there was an emergency, you were expected to put in whatever hours that were necessary, but otherwise, the expectations were not too high. The work hours were from 8:00 to 4:42pm, with 42 minutes for lunch. (Although people often took longer lunch breaks.) People generally did not take their work home with them after 4:42. From what I know, that attitude is completely gone at IBM today.
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