Philosophy 101: What is Work?

Today I am considering a world where assembly line workers stop producing and contemplate their work for – oh, I don’t know – anywhere from 30 seconds to 20 minutes.

The thought of a worker stopping production to reflect on and contemplate the perfection of their widget is ridiculous. Yet reflection and contemplation is a very time consuming and inherent element of what I do.

I have a strong working class idea of what “work” means. That deeply embedded archetype is simultaneously in conflict with the kind of work I do, so much so that I have a hard time thinking of what I do all day as work.

Work means production. Sweat.

I write.

Unlike the processes of many working class jobs – the kind of work my boyfriend, my dad, my brother, my aunts, my uncles and many of my friends do – writing is not a process you can watch, or even one that has a definite end.

The challenges I face in writing are impossible to explain to someone whose job has results you can see.

There is no timecard. I write until the piece is finished. A writer can “work” for an hour and still have little to nothing. Try telling someone who punches a clock and needs to meet a quota that an hour spent with no tangible results is work.

They won’t buy it. Like I said, I don’t buy it.

This is just one example of the many cultural conflicts that working class students face when they come to UW-Madison. Deeply held convictions the culture has about work – production and sweat, for example - do not identify certain skill sets as being conducive to earning a living.

WCSU Library Collection is ready for checkout!

The Working Class Student Union is excited to announce that we have recieved our first shipment of books and DVDs for our library collection. Students can stop into the WCSU office, #3153 SAC, to review our selection and check out materials.

I found Without A Net to be a particularly wonderful book. The various essays are a great way to internalize the many faces of working class backgrounds and the diversity of voices is a nice change of pace from academic discussions.

Books:
• Class Matters, from The New York Times
• Without a Net: The Female Experience of Growing Up Working Class, edited by Michelle Tea
• Limbo: Blue-Collar Roots, White-Collar Dreams, by Alfred Lubrano
• New Working Class Studies, edited by John Russo and Sherry Linkon
•Teaching Working Class, edited by Sherry Linkon
• Two or Three Things I Know for Sure, by Dorothy Allison
• Feminism is for Everybody, by Bell Hooks

DVDs:
• Sicko
• Norma Rae
• Erin Brockovich

The Wal-Mart Debate

I avoid shopping at Wal-Mart. I say “avoid” because this is not a militant position – if there is a time crunch and it’s on the way, I’ll go there as a matter of practicality, but there are typically months to years between these times.

I have a couple reasons for this. First, Wal-Mart’s profits are used to widely influence political positions that I cannot support, both at the corporate level and by the Walton family.

Second, their website states that the average wage for regular, full-time employees is $11.73 in Wisconsin, but that is just the problem – this number doesn’t include part-timers or seasonal workers.

Further, I’d wager that $11.73 is also skewed by an inflated salary given to one or two managers whose job it is to keep hours down for part-time workers.

Another reason Wal-Mart is unappealing to me is that if they decide they want to be in a community, you’d better believe that Wal-Mart will be opening a store there whether the community wants it or not.

A blog post by the Center for Working Class Studies further illustrates this problem. I was particularly struck by the comment that, “Walmart may save us money at the check-out, but we pay for it in taxes and lost jobs.”

What if, instead of giving them tax benefits to build their stores, everyone in the community just took out their checkbook and wrote a check directly to Wal-Mart? Maybe then a few cents saved at the register will not seem like such a great deal.

The views in this blog post are that of the author and do not represent the opinions of the entire Working Class Student Union.

October is Working Class Celebration Month

We’re right in the middle of Working Class Celebration Month and really excited about tomorrow’s event, Steel Strings and Breakbeats, at 7:30 p.m. on the 4^th floor of the SAC.

You can check out the artists on the tour at riotfolk.org and broadcastlive.org.

Join us on Tuesday nights in 1221 Humanities at 6 – 8 p.m. for these events:

“Keys to Financial Success in College”

featuring UW Credit Union

Oct. 20

“Finally Got the News”

documentary viewing and discussion

co-sponsored by Student Labor Action Coalition

Oct. 27

“Class and Access to Health”

a discussion on healthcare and how class has an effect on the access to services

we will be showing a short film and discussion to follow

Nov. 3

WCSU is also really excited to offer our first-ever event for student-parents and their families:

WCSU Fall Festival

Join us for pumpkin painting, scarecrow stuffing, scavenger hunts, and other fall activities – breakfast snacks will be available

Saturday, Oct. 24, 9 a.m. -12 p.m., on Library Mall

WCSU is Hiring! Applications due Wednesday @ 5 PM!

Working Class Student Union is Hiring!
Applications due this Wednesday @ 5 PM!

We are hiring for a Communication Secretary and a Finance Secretary.
These positions will begin on July 1, 2009 and will each will be paid $9.19/hour.

Applications available at: http://uwwcsu.org/page_attachments/0000/0005/WCSUapplication.pdf

Communication Secretary Job Description
* Coordinates with the Working Class Student Union Assembly Officers about publicity.
* Coordinates history of past work for institutional memory.
* Maintains the WCSUA publicity materials, including the website, news publications and campus outreach.
* Writes and contacts all media outlets when needed during campaigns.
* Shall work with the WCSUA Officers to assemble the agendas, minutes and other items as needed by the WCSUA.
* Will receive agenda item requests and meet with the Chair to distinguish what will go on the agenda.
* As appropriate, serves as the primary contact person for WCSU to the media, for campus events/committees, and as otherwise requested.
* Required to hold weekly office hours at the WCSU office or other agreed upon and posted location.
* Attends weekly officer meeting(s) to ensure communication and collaboration.
* Prepares all necessary press releases for WCSU campaigns.
* Chairs the Communication Taskforce.
* Attends all Committee meetings as necessary, particularly those of the Activism Committee.
* Coordinates all media contacts, campaigns, and releases.


Finance Secretary Job Description:
* Prepares and presents SSFC Budget Requests, End of Year Reports, and Eligibility Applications to SSFC, with input from all staff.
* Educates staff about financial procedures (so that everyone understands how our budget operates, how we pay for expenses, etc.).
* Works with coordinators to stay within budget while efficiently and effectively using funds while expending all funds responsibly.
* Works with the SSFC Financial Specialist to pay all bills in a timely and efficient manner, through use of blanket orders and specific requisitions.
* Oversees and reviews all WCSU operational policies, documents, and outreach efforts to ensure compliance with SSFC, UW-Madison, Wisconsin, and Federal laws.
* Prepares all eligibility and budget applications, documents, and spreadsheets as required from the funding source.
* Works to solicit in-kind donations from community organizations and unions.
* Is a trained and authorized signer for financial matters.
* Required to hold weekly office hours at the WCSU office or other agreed upon and posted location.
* Attends weekly officer meeting(s) to ensure communication and collaboration.
* Represents WCSU at all required funding meetings and hearings.
* Works with WCSU officers, advisors, committee chairs, and members to prepare the budget and distribute funds appropriately.
* Maintains in house accounting system.
* Gathers statistics necessary for fiscal accountability: calls for referrals, advocacy meetings, attendance numbers of all WCSU events, number of volunteers, etc.
* Manages the payroll system and the bank account at the UW Credit Union.
* Collects, processes, and submits coordinators’ timesheets on a biweekly basis.
* Orders and purchases office supplies as necessary.


To turn in your application, you can:
1) E-mail to wcsu.president@gmail.com
2) Drop off in our mailbox, which is located on the 3rd floor of the Student Activity Center. Get off the elevator, turn left. Note the large wall of mailboxes--our mailbox is the one furthest to the left and on the very bottom and is labeled "Working Class Student Union"
3) Slide the application under our office door. Our office is 3153 of the Student Activity Center. Get off the elevator on the 3rd floor, turn left, walk all the way down the long hallway and our office is the very last office on the left-hand side.

We look forward to receiving your application!