To ask what jobs people secretly (or not so secretly) look down on and why?

[ForBreezySloth]

We’re always told “all work is valuable” and I do agree in principle, but if we’re honest, most of us have a job or two we side-eye, even if we don’t say it out loud. Is it how people behave in the role? The pay vs attitude? The ethics of the job itself?

AIBU to think it’s okay to admit we have judgements - as long as we’re willing to examine them?

None really. Well, executives in the porn industry I guess. So someone in a job I regard as deeply immoral and would rather is illegal.

No not really - most people have to earn a living even if their job isn't something I would like - only immoral stuff I would look down on.

Do you think people who have jobs that are ‘less than’ are ‘less than’ people too?

I can't think of any tbh. Prostitutes/Myfans workers maybe. Not looking down on but would be embarrassed to admit to.

Influencers and reality tv people

"influencers", YouTubers, anyone involved in the trafficking of sex workers, Tory politicians.

It’s amazing that most people I come across in the world have some degree of judgement or snobbery yet on MN people are saints

Not at all - I don’t think people are “less than” because of their job. That’s exactly why I said examining our judgements is important. We can all have knee-jerk reactions or assumptions (about pay, attitude, status etc) but the point is to notice them, not act like they make us better. I think pretending no one has these thoughts can be more dangerous than acknowledging and unpacking them.

Not look down on as such but I'm mystified why bankers and the like earn so much money when their impact is minimal when other professions which are much worse paid, such as childcare, teachers, cleaners, have a tangible benefit but are paid less.

Only fans. God it’s grim.

Being a YouTube ‘influencer’
Being a z-list celebrity. Basically jobs that aren’t actually jobs and nothing positive to society.

Pyramid schemes. It’s not (usually) really a job at all.

Yes this is me - footballers for example versus the people who care for us, keep us alive and safe.

Charity street fundraisers (chuggers) and the ones that go door to door.

Recruitment consultants

I've never come across an honest one. They are either advertising jobs that don't exist in order to farm cvs, or are pushing unsuitable people to businesses

People who capitalise on the vulnerable and those with low self esteem i.e. anyone who makes a living out of filling people's faces with crap even though they know that every single one of them looks ridiculous.

Well you do see it on here sometimes, people who seem a bit perplexed and annoyed about what tradespeople charge and earn. A recent thread on this someone was moaning ‘well I shouldn’t have bothered working hard and going to uni’ in response to what they charge. I’ve also seen the odd thread where posters are bit dismayed that their friends child who has become a mechanic or plumber or whatever is out-earning their DC who has graduated. So maybe there is an element of snobbery there about degrees and jobs at desks. I don’t think it’s overly common anymore though?

That’s exactly the kind of thing I was thinking about, not always overt, but those little jolts of surprise or discomfort when someone earns well without the ‘expected’ route like uni or an office job. I agree it’s probably less common now but I still think there’s some quiet snobbery tied to status of expectations. Not always malicious, just unexamined. Interesting to hear your take.

I sometimes wonder about influencers who have given up their 'real' jobs to shill stuff/ make content. Most won't remain relevant for very long, do they just hope the gravy train will keep going? Or will they go back to a normal job? I suppose they have to make hay while the sun shines.

Funnily enough I was thinking about this today. Many of the most important jobs in society caring, cleaning, emptying bins and cleaning the streets, working in a sewerage works or a rubbish tip are looked down on by some people. It would be great if everyone had to do one of these types of jobs for a period of six months. A sort of conscription type system.Walk a mile in someone else’s shoes and all that. I cleaned and did care and bar work before going into teaching. My DH worked labouring in heavy industry for a year before going to University and then into banking. With regards to influencers they do irritate me probably because I don’t really understand them 😂. However on the news today there are 45,000 people employed directly and indirectly in that sort of thing? Better than no job.

I know what you mean - the pace and pressure of that world seems intense, and staying relevant must be exhausting. I guess some are savvy with savings or pivot into new work (like courses, books, brand deals) but I do wonder how many have a plan B. It’s a strange mix of freedom and instability, isn’t it?

That’s such a good point, there’s so much quiet dignity in roles that keep society running, even if they don’t always get respect. And I agree, doing that kind of work really changes how you see things. I think our judgements often say more about what we’ve not experienced than anything else. And yeah influencers are a bit baffling to me too but 45,000 is no joke! Clearly the landscape’s shifting.

Honestly I would not like to be married to a Concierge/door person, the ones outside the big hotels. It's just the donning of the cap I can't stand and having to suck up to anyone. I also wouldn't like to be married to a farmer but that's just the muck and awful hours.

Yes, I’m the daughter of a bin man, and you wouldn’t believe how often in my life his job has been thrown around in my hearing as shorthand for ‘menial task performed by unimportant dregs’. ‘Oh, I told Jeremy that if he didn’t pull up his socks at A level, he’d up as a BIN MAN!’ I have always put them straight, obviously, and pointed out that if it weren’t for bin men, we’d all be neck-deep in uncollected rubbish and rats, and that if they really want to sit about and think of jobs of no value, refuse collection is nowhere near my list.

(Becky Chambers’ Wayfarer sci-fi series has humans leaving an uninhabitable earth and living on huge spaceships. On these ships, everyone over the age of 14 takes their turn doing refuse collection, recycling, unclogging sewers, because there’s no ‘away’ to throw things, and no poor people to delegate these tasks to.)

Bankers

Totally agree with you, it's such an important and valuable job