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Comment by vcryan | Hacker News Reader

This is very silly. I don't want any part of my personal life connected to my employer.

Okay, just ignore the company's offers.

But if your coworker says "yes, please!" to the company's free Thanksgiving turkeys and Christmas hams and cheap T-shirts with company logos and subsidized health care and retirement plan and such - that's their choice.

the problem is that if this becomes more common your argument won't be an option. It'd be akin to saying "just ignore the company's offers for health insurance" - well now our whole system is designed to account for and expect employer sponsored health insurance and you'll be at a massive disadvantage by not accepting it.

I wouldn't really call my neighbours a "part of my personal life". They're just people who live near me and have relatively little impact on my life. If anything, I wouldn't be surprised if people working at my company are more similar/relatable to me than just a random set of people in the same socio-economic class that move next to me.

It's not just the people. It's also the same company providing your home, utilities, etc.

Are the prices and quality at market norms or are you paying back your wages for extra profit to your employer?

That's a lot of eggs in one basket.

I'm buying the home from the company with a mortgage from a bank, which I assume is not the company's bank. I'd also assume that the utilities are covered by a third-party. And if I have to move somewhere where there's basically no utility companies outside of my employer to service the area, then moving there is basically putting all of the eggs in one basket anyways.

Is the company the only basis for your property value? If the company fails or moves out of town, do you lose both your job and all your equity?

> They're just people who live near me and have relatively little impact on my life.

When shit hits the fan, you will suddenly hope they become part of your personal life. It is only in a relatively high trust society with a mostly working police/court/government that you can afford to exclude your neighbors from your personal life.

My parents taught me a saying from their native language that translates to the people physically closest to you are your closest family. They are going to be the ones who can help you in times of need (or harm you), so building and maintaining relationships with them is advisable.

That's extremely sad to hear.

Why?

From one side you are correct and entitled to be able to do that. From another, and IANAPsychologist, I doubt the psychological effect of trying to emotionally isolate yourself from people you spend most of your time with is positive.

I am a huge believer in keeping my personal life as separate from my employer as I possibly can, for a whole host of reasons. I may technically spend a lot of time with my coworkers, but we're working, not socializing. My coworkers are acquaintances, not friends.

That's not the same as being emotionally isolated. You still (presumably) have friends and family.

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