What’s your views on people doing Low Skilled jobs all their life? Are they stupid?

[Benny91]

People that are bin men, cleaners, bus drivers and work in retail? Do you think they’re only doing it because they’re not very smart?

As I heard this guy talking to his friend in the Gym today and that he’s a manager at a supermarket and all I overheard was that the longest ones who have worked at the place are ‘thick as shit’, and I was actually quite shocked about what he said! 😳

Also saying about those doing this long term. People often assume that people that do this way of living are failures in life?!

Whats your thoughts?

I don't really think about it.
If people can work, need/want to work, and are working that's good.

Just popping in to say - I work in retail, and have done for the last ten years. I've got a first class degree. I work in the shop because I also write novels, and being able to 'choose' hours and shifts means that I have the free time available when I need it, and can attend writing events/book signings/meet my agent/editor when I want to. Previously I worked in a school (I had young children) and not being able to do ANYTHING in school hours restricted my career as a writer.

I know that I am a sample of one, but I think my experience shows that not everyone is there because 'it's all they can get'. I work with a lot of Uni students in the vacs too because we're very rural and there's only so many jobs available to them!

Of course not! I have no idea why people choose the jobs they do. For most people it’s not a choice. If you’re busy doing a low skilled job you’re normally exhausted and dont have time to train up for something else. They are useful and important jobs.

And would I be happy if one of my kids did those jobs? If they were happy - yes. 100%. Just hate how low the pay is for a lot of them.

There was a post about AI taking jobs the other day where the OP was talking about low paid jobs. I make between £22/£30 an hour as a cleaner and PA carer. In my experience most do this kinda job as it fits around having little ones if they became single mum for example, it is not always the case or those who like the freedom of being self employed and choosing clients and hours that suit them. I wouldn’t say what I do is low pay or low skilled when minimum wage is around £12.20 an hr. But the stigma will always be there I made the mistake for cleaning for a friend and whilst cleaning her house she was talking to me and said ‘when you get a proper job’ when I make more then her and work more hours and you just have to suck it up sometimes.

Absolutely.

I went to private school. I have a good degree. Im currently not working at all (SAHM) and did a lot of support work and TA work before. This job hierarchy is horrible ans pathetic and shows how so many people buy into the idea that jobs are everything. Also very classist.

I’ve never thought about it, a job is a job and I don’t look down (or up) at anyone and consider their intelligence. I mean I know the GPs I work with are intelligent but I equally see them consider everyone in the surgery a valuable part of the team .
That includes the cleaning staff who are not left out at Xmas So no looking down or judgement there.

Honestly I’d judge anyone who felt they needed to comment like the man in the gym did. It would make me wonder about their own self esteem and confidence.

There’s no such thing as an unskilled job, that’s a capitalist lie spread by the 1% to justify poverty wages.

As pointed out by several others, without binmen, retail staff, care workers and cleaners the world would grind to a halt, we should’ve learnt this from Covid lockdowns, but apparently we haven’t.

Intelligence the ability to think.

Every person you know with a degree is arguably "intelligent", however, they aren't intelligent because they have a degree, they have a degree BECAUSE they ARE intelligent.

They weren't stupid before they attended Uni.

A very interesting person may decide that driving a bus is exactly what they enjoy and pursue their interests in other ways. When you see someone do a job, you have no idea of their background.

There is a Special Counstable who I speak to sometimes when he is out patrolling our neighbourhood. He's, in his late 40s. I'm sure most people would look at him and assume he's just another overworked Police Officer. He's an Airline Captain. But you wouldn't know that if you just assumed something about him.

He is one of those insecure, shallow assholes, who need to build themselves up by looking down on others. I mean, a supermarket manager is not exactly a rocket scientist either. Furthermore, some people just aren't interested in climbing the corporate ladder or putting all their mental energy in their day jobs while having nothing left for what really matters to them, such as their friends, family and hobbies.

This guy sounds like a bad manager. He should not be in any position of leadership and I can readily imagine why many of his subordinates are mentally checked out of their jobs. I don't think it would matter if they had any suggestions for improvements or went the extra mile at work.

Haha, feeling superior enough from the heady heights of retail management to run your mouth like that in public.... It screams "massive twat" rather than "formidable intellect" to me 🙄

No, they're not stupid, I knew very smart people doing this work but they are people who went to not-so-great schools and who just didn't know people who did any other kind of work, there was no expectation of that where they grew up. Obviously some people do break away from that but a lot don't.

Also some people are very happy doing jobs they can just forget about when they go home and don't cause them much stress (not to say many of those jobs aren't stressful, especially when dealing with members of the public).

I often daydream about quitting my corporate role and getting a job working in a local shop or at the garden centre. I would quite like less stress and a role that I can walk away from and not take the worry home with me. The problem is I feel tied to my current role by the money.

My mum on the other hand worked in a cafe for most of her working life. She's now retired. She isn't stupid at all, she reads widely and is particularly interested in Roman history. She just was content to earn enough money to house, feed and clothe us all and was happy with the simple things and not needing a bigger house or a nicer holiday etc. She liked chatting with people and being active and on her feet during the day rather than being sat down at a desk. As I've laid awake last night worrying about a work issue.....I actually think perhaps she is the sensible one out of the two of us.

This was 20 years ago but I had a friend who married a bin man and she said they were actually really well paid.

I have total respect for people who do these jobs. I also have a cleaner and I love her.

I have an office job now and I really really miss working in retails. I wfh and i miss walking around and speaking to people, especially when i worked as a bra fitter. I would go back to it but to me, money is security so i chose the money.

On the other hand, i did have a friend who has been in retail all her life, chose to turn down a promotion because she didn’t want to manage her friends, and then moans about lack of money and blames the government. So yes i then judge people like that.

Maybe, like my FIL who was a postie all his life, they were told at school that they were thick and they never believed they could do anything other than very basic jobs.

Or like my MIL who wanted to go to uni and study maths, they were laughed at and told to get a proper job as what was the point in educating girls.

Intelligence is a difficult thing to define. It’s treated like something intrinsic to individuals when in reality it’s probably as much nurture as nature. The environment you grow up in and people around you can have a huge impact on how ‘intelligent’ you become.

No, not stupid - probably cleverer than many people who push themselves into stressful corporate jobs and get over-promoted into roles they can't manage.

Some people make a conscious choice to take the mental freedom a low-skilled job will give - leave the workplace for the day, leave the job completely behind, no worrying about the presentation you have to give next week or the difficult HR situation you've been asked to handle. No working insanely long hours fo no reward - low-skilled jobs usually pay overtime.

If you are happy living a simple lifestyle or you're in a position not to need a high wage (high earning partner, or you've left a corporate job with a big payout/pension) it's a good option.

I wouldn't assume a supermarket manager was any more or less intelligent than the other staff who work there.

My db was a bin man.He had 9 top grade o levels and a place at Durham.

My df died just before his A level exams. He failed his A levels.

He also had l suspect undiagnosed adhd. So no he’s not ‘thick’

This.

IPhone it's not nice to say but intelligence like other attributes eg being able to sing or paint comes at different levels in a scale where there is a low and genius level, retail has different levels as many other jobs. I know 2 people who work in retail 1has not been able to finish school and is not intelligently skilled and the other has 2 degrees and is bright and there are probably a range so tarring a job is undair

As often the first response nails it!

My mother stacked shelves for years, it's true her literacy isn't great and she has no real education to speak of. But during that time she raised over £200k for an important community project in our town, then she took those skills and went on to set up an award winning charity (all on an entirely voluntary basis). I bet this middle management loser hasn't achieved a fraction of what she has.

IPhone it's not nice to say but intelligence like other attributes eg being able to sing or paint comes at different levels in a scale where there is a low and genius level, retail has different levels as many other jobs. I know 2 people who work in retail 1has not been able to finish school and is not intelligently skilled and the other has 2 degrees and is bright and there are probably a range so tarring a job is unfair

There are a handful of posters who usually post on the higher education boards who are terribly snooty about careers and universities.

These same posters consider that anyone not wanting a career in banking/law/finance/magic circle/big 4 firm in London lack ambition.

They live in their ivory towers and have no idea about the real world.

Someone has to go those jobs.

I know people with degrees doing these types of jobs. It may suit them for all sorts of reasons - flexible hours, no commute, hours that fit around their other commitments, low stress or responsibility and that is good for their health, starting out in the workplace, or returning to it, etc etc. I know quite a few retirees who do supermarket work -eg my DH, who has a degree from Oxford and worked in the media most of his life. He’s not alone - his retired friend works in a shop too.