Very late retirement

One of the biggest discussions popping up in this never-ending run-up to the next election is the work load (hours) we all face and social security, especially the age of retirement — preferably, according to several candidates, pushing that to 68 or 70. Like other societal changes in the second new industrial revolution, retirement is about to change. The 40-hour (or 35 in France) work week was mandated to protect industrial workers from abuse after the last industrial revolution. Part of the reasoning for a fixed retirement age was to let the newcomers have a chance (and give those 65+ a break). The new changes about to be discussed and possibly enacted for retirement will be mandated by class pressures, national financial needs and a basic change in the perception of what life is all about.

The computer age (as opposed to the first Industrial Revolution’s “Machine Age”) is enabling everyone to mask deficiencies (like spelling) and odd work times behind productivity and work-load achievements; your work load is often set and achieved at your own pace, with the volume of your work measured by your employer to determine if you are a worthwhile asset to the company. I know one telecommuter who makes sure to blind copy at least four other people on each email, racking up an impressive email tally on the company server — proof she was “very engaged and busy,” even when working from home. It’s all about see and be seen, prove you were working. Sitting at home, both an over-65er who can’t sleep anyway and tomorrow’s young work force can catch up on paperwork, statistics, sales, whatever, and transmit the results over the Internet. Up to today, the measure of the output of a worker (productivity) was set against piecework standards or office overhead or maybe company profit. Working from home, in flex-time, these standards no longer apply, and the only measure of output from a worker will be his or her success in getting paid for a set amount of work (e-piecework) or financial gain from sales (e-commerce).

So, what’s the point of retiring? You want to make a trip to Germany for the Oktoberfest? Get online, take on an e-task and earn extra e-dollars. Like those immigrant workers huddled together on a street corner in LA waiting for day work, you will be able to pick jobs off an Internet site and, task completed, earn e-credits good toward your plane fare — or even on the plane!

The pressure of this kind of life, set against the model of the 1950s, ’60s and ’70s, when you got your weekly or monthly paycheck and could plan a life of mortgages, kids’ college, car payments, etc., is familiar to all the self-employed. Those of you on company payroll should start preparing now for the stress. Of course, you can always get a mortgage, car lease and plan for those college fees, stabilizing your income by setting up your own cottage industry, a small company and paying yourself a salary (which will look good to a bank).

Some people will not cope with this pressure, and our society may need to help them over the uncertainty with some sort of work guidelines (the e-workweek) and social welfare. Not to do so may cause the collapse of the economy as a whole. Think I’m kidding? Internet commerce and business viability is based on a certain number of subscribers and transactions taking place daily and a planned expansion of that number for the future. If the people who can’t cope with this new way of life begin to log off and disconnect from the system, the very fabric of the Internet may collapse. It’s what Gandhi did in India. His disconnect from the Industrial Revolution’s machine output (cotton mills) wobbled the economy of England and forced negotiations. Homespun became a more effective weapon than bullets or anarchy. The people who cannot cope, the Spin-Offs I call them, can bring about a collapse of the system just as effectively. Each one of us secretly dislikes the darn computer. It’s indispensable, like the car, but can be a very personal thorn in our side. Turn it off? Sounds tempting. That’s enough to start a counter-culture. If enough people switch off, the Internet and e-commerce will blink out.

For those Spin-Offs who really cannot cope with this new society, like the homeless on the streets today, society may heartlessly take the position that it is able to disregard them with more ease than ever. Problem is, the Spin-Offs have secret power. Pretending they are not there or will fade away is dangerous. Forcing them to adapt to an e-society is too much like “A Clockwork Orange.” The key here may be in a revision of retirement thinking, away from a set age or financial means. After all, in the end Spin-Offs are early retirees (if only from the new industrial revolution). Don’t we as a society need to support those who are forced or choose early retirement? The burden of these Spin-Offs should be catered for by the new e-conomy we’ve created. Just as we protect worthwhile historic enterprises in our society (wooden shipbuilders, folk dancers, colonial villages, hand-knitters) those who prefer pen and ink, reading a book instead of scanning it, and a way of life that got us here from our recent past though hard work and excellence, these people deserve to have their way of life preserved, even if they are Spin-Offs from this brave new e-world we’re creating.

Peter Riva, a former resident of Amenia Union, now lives in New Mexico.