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Comment by fijiaarone | Hacker News Reader

Tech workers used to not be average people.

The film industry has a lot of unions as well, including for their "above average" people (writers, actors, etc.)

I think most engineers/developers/scientists would welcome, or at least be fine with, being a member of a guild like writers and actors. Their parent poster is suggesting that a traditional US union is the way, which I personally don't agree with and don't think I am unique in that regard.

To be honest, I'm not sure I know the difference. I got invited to SAG-AFTRA after doing a TV commercial and it seemed pretty union-y to me. Not that it's inherently a bad thing, and maybe I'm wrong in that there are differences but not aware of them.

Could you say more about the differences you see between a traditional US union and a modern day guild?

What I meant is that something like SAG-AFTRA provides some benefits and sets minimum standards for a work environment but does not limit your ability to negotiate a higher rate for your work, does not require promotion (whatever that would mean in this context) based on seniority, etc.

In the US, doctors, lawyers, and to some extent professional engineers and other licensed professions operate under a somewhat similar model in that they restrict supply of that class of labor through some sort of accreditation, apply minimum standards for the profession, and otherwise stay out of your business for the most part.

This is a frustrating comment. Please elaborate with a real point! Just highlighting something that used to be the case, does not imply that it should always be the case, nor does it imply that it reflects the case now.

This is the propaganda they used to keep us from organizing in our best interest.

Right, they want you to believe that each of us is a special little snowflake so we can crab bucket each other.

Of course, simultaneously, they treat us as completely fungible. Every engineer is like any other in their eyes.

Such a perfect contradiction should surely spark introspection in employees... you would think.

"The enemy is simultaneously strong and weak" - one of the warning signs of fascism

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