Pennies Earned

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I took a great deal of grief yesterday for a post I put up on my Facebook page. I posted there:

Most people do not work with a sense of urgency. I would like to know how some people sleep at night who show up to get a paycheck for which they did not work, knowing full well the burden of their responsibility will be carried by others.

We have a lot of people who talk about their rights without attendent responsibilities. They think they deserve their paychecks. The only way to make money is to print it illegally in your basement or work for the US Mint. Everyone else goes to work in order to earn it.

You get your money based on work. Either you get your money by a direct trade in your time for that medium exchange or because someone else invested their life and it was reallocated to you. Robbers are the people who take things that belong to other people. Yet, too many of us talk about our privileges as if they were rights.

This week, an interesting story arose in the news that illustrates this point about how people think they deserve things they obtained by deceit or criminal means. Their dad was honest about the fraud perpetrated by his children when twin boys switched places in a contest by an insurance company to win $50,000 in a hockey shootout. By right and by law, the boys have no right to any money. What would be a win-win, to reward them for their honesty, teach them a lesson, and help the insurance company look magnanimous, would be to offer the boys a chance to earn the money. Let the twins star in a commercial for the insurance company, perhaps using the one's amazing hockey skills, and then help them learn to earn and help both the insurance as well as hockey industries.

Many people do not like their jobs, and I understand that. Most people work for the money, no matter how much good they do with it afterwards. After all, if you give away all of your stuff, you become dependent on others. Furthermore, if the government takes all your stuff, you become one among those who depend on it. The fact of the matter is that the work left undone for which you are paid is done by someone. There are usually a few people around who either have consciences or work overtime to get done what you leave behind. Fortunately for society they exist.

At almost every job I have ever worked, my employers have found they could count on me. Eventually I learned to earn my pennies. We had this massive move at work into brand new laboratories and out of storage the last two weeks, and I have been at work every day, all day, moving, unpacking, cleaning, organizing, and taking inventory for coworkers who are absent as well as doing my own work. At my previous job, I had first dibs on overtime because I was worth the $25/hour they had to pay me, because they would get the most value out of me for that rate, even if it was something that wasn't quite worth that much. The work needed to be done, and they rewarded me. Unfortunately now I work a salaried state job in education and earn far less than most of my coworkers, and all my boss can do is send me emails expressing gratitude.

Eventually, your reputation preceeds you. We need to send messages that it pays to be honest. We need to send messages that it pays to work. We need to pay people in something that helps them now and in the future- cash bonuses and accolades. When we fail to defend good principles, we send the message that they are not important and in essence betray them. The work will get done, it will be done well enough, and it will be done on time. Will you be the one who gets the reward? Will your pennies be earned?