How do you folks overcome the guilt of privilege that we have compared to blue collar folks?
Being self-aware, I understand how privileged I am. In spite of whatever is happening in the startup ecosystem, most of us are extremely privileged. WFH when it rains or when you are not in the mood to come to the office. Salary comes on time Have AC homes and offices Delivery apps like Zomato, Amazon, Big Basket to get so much work done. I feel extreme levels of guilt when I see blue collar folks slog themselves throughout a day to get meagre pays. Sure, their work is not intellectually challenging but extremely physically challenging. The kind of physical activity that they have to do irrespective of what weather it is just pains my heart. I know that this divide has been there for centuries and will remain in the future too. I try to help them wherever I can. This is a problem that for sure cannot solve for everyone ever. Want to understand how I can overcome this guilt that I have?
Felt the same thing few days back. Not sure how to overcome guilt but really puts everything in perspective.
Our house help was paid today, and I can't forget the sheer joy in her eyes with that pay. And it was a measly amount when compared to my lifestyle.
Pains my heart. How to overcome this feeling?:(
GyaanExpert
Stealth
a year ago
Bro , i feel the same as you I just try to be empathetic to blue collar workers but i hate when my colleagues or friends treat them like shit , just because it's their job that doesn't mean you can take them for granted
Loner
Stealth
a year ago
I completely get the feeling. Over the years, I have realised that it all comes down to respecting all types of work and realising that the joy they feel on getting paid is similar to the one we get when our salary gets credited. Additionally, I think what we can do instead of feeling pity for them is to acknowledge the fact that some(most actually) blue collor jobs require more physical effort and we should be considerate with folks in this profession. For ex: if your apartment doesn't have a lift, it's not necessary to always call the delivery guy to climb 3 floors, because for you, it might be just once that you climb up and down, but for them, they have to do it the whole day.
Yeah. If we look around, blue collars are everywhere. Some I have zero sympathies such as Auto Drivers and Cab drivers. But for the rest, I feel sad.
House helps, drivers, security guards, delivery persons with Amazon, Swiggy etc.
How do you overcome this guilt?
Itachi777
Stealth
a year ago
Agree with you on this. I always tip them on swiggy since I feel bad about their condition. If my company made me travel on a 2 wheeler during Summers/rain, I would probably resign on the same day. But these folks do it everyday for a much smaller salary. Not to mention the construction labour and mine workers who face even more hazardous conditions.
I guess when blue collar workers think about us, they justify the privileges we have by thinking that we are educated and solve much more intellectual tasks and are contributing more to the GDP and that justifies makes us living comfortably.
Similarly how we corporate workers think that celebrities and sports people are justified making our annual CTC in just a few days of work because the amount of publicity they bring to a company and market reach makes them far more valuable than us.
If we think about how most folks in our country make a living, most of us on a platform like this are definitely privileged. The only thing we can do is be aware of our privilege, make the best of the opportunities we have and help more people around us rise up with the tide.
SceneUnseen
Stealth
a year ago
That's why we have the idea of Karma. Your current situation is a result of your past actions or pest lives. Why are you privileged? You were a good cow in your last life. Why are some others not? They were horrible life forms torturing other beings. May not make sense, but makes one think "don't do the crime in your past life if you can't do the crime in your next".
Qwerty2398
Stealth
a year ago
Not all blue collar folks struggle.. in cities and big towns most of them earn as much as a entry level software engineer.. and hardly any of them pay taxes (legally).. saying all blue collar folks suffer is similar to saying all farmers are struggling...
I agree partially. Some blue collar folks such as repair guys, auto drivers etc do make decent money. However, most don't.
Delivery folks, house helps, guards, migrant labourer workers etc.
Nobody22
Stealth
a year ago
Don't be in guilt buddy, rather empathise with them. You are privileged because you fought a few battles to get here.
And people who want to make the best out them will eventually do. S
I just look at the other side where I make pennies compared to billionaires.
In the end it's just a who can hoard the most wealth dick measuring contest.
Support local vendors as much as you can, dont bargain with them.
Pay for your maid's kid schooling.
Do some charity work.
Help nearby people, people who you can affect first hand.
That being said, the system is broken. Good for you to be aware about that, most aren't.
I try to settle it with "Nothing is equal in this world". Planets, nature, organisms, 5 fingers on our hand, everything, they all show the inequality
Good luck going down this rabbit hole. You’ll carry guilt if u hv it better than u ever made efforts for. If not, don’t look down on those folks… Society has made this mess. Life is more than just money or convenience imbalance… Go make a golden memory for them somehow apart from money which even they can’t think of… That might truly help them and u when u look back
