How can we separate politics from work when making products for people?
Being ideological neutral is still a political stance, because it's an implicit backing of the status quo.
Being ideological neutral is still a political stance, because it's an implicit backing of the status quo.
One example that is should be especially obvious in the era of a pandemic that some tasks are effectively neutral because everybody needs it to not die. Food production, limiting the spread of disease and treating it, etc. Even those "against the status quo" don't usually support everyone dying of starvation. Putting aside that said binary is useless as a descriptor. Where Q = the status quo !Q includes all of "pay workers more","steal the businesses and give a share of the profits to the workers instead of a paycheck" ,"enslave the workers" , and "kill literally everyone" as against the status quo. I guarantee that those related !Q are not one big happy family.
Being "apolitical" is still a political stance, you're signaling that the current set of norms is acceptable.
The demand for meat (though nutritionally unnecessary) and the potential anger from citizens denied the option to buy meat rendered meat plant workers essential workers and thus put at risk for covid.
Food production and delivery is a matter of political deliberation also because we have to ask, "Who works?" It would've been neutral if everyone got time off work, got stimulus checks, and a rotation of ALL people of working age worked at the grocery store to shelve and man the cashiers. But that's not what happened.
The political nature of work isn't only on the material nature of the task but on the people involved.