
可以看出“工作崗位創(chuàng)造者”是一個(gè)有內(nèi)涵的術(shù)語,因?yàn)樗挥糜谡无q論場合,。
是的,,一些企業(yè)主不是在董事會(huì)或內(nèi)部備忘錄中使用這個(gè)術(shù)語,而是在向公眾捍衛(wèi)自己的利益時(shí)這樣說,。多年來,星巴克(Starbucks)的首席執(zhí)行官霍華德·舒爾茨一直援引這一概念來反對(duì)公眾監(jiān)督,。
家得寶(Home Depot)的創(chuàng)始人伯尼·馬庫斯大力普及這一短語,。他的工作崗位創(chuàng)造者網(wǎng)絡(luò)(Job Creators Network)聲稱要“讓政客們對(duì)工作崗位創(chuàng)造者負(fù)責(zé)”。
在過去的十年里,,這個(gè)術(shù)語在政治家中也迅速流行起來,。參議員約翰·科寧最近在開場白中抨擊了《降低通貨膨脹法案》(Inflation Reduction Act):“對(duì)工作崗位創(chuàng)造者提高稅收……只會(huì)讓這場經(jīng)濟(jì)衰退變得更糟。”他的同事約翰·圖恩和吉姆·因霍夫回應(yīng)了這些批評(píng),。
商業(yè)術(shù)語漫畫
這個(gè)術(shù)語流行的時(shí)間并不長,。“工作崗位創(chuàng)造者”一詞誕生于美國前總統(tǒng)羅納德·里根執(zhí)政時(shí)期,,一直鮮為人知,,直到21世紀(jì)第一個(gè)十年的中期,當(dāng)時(shí)媒體為了捍衛(wèi)金融在經(jīng)濟(jì)大蕭條時(shí)期(Great Recession)的作用,,重新使用了這個(gè)術(shù)語?,F(xiàn)在,在關(guān)于稅收和監(jiān)管,、失業(yè)和勞工組織以及介于兩者之間的許多話題的爭論中,,這是一種常見的說法。
這一短語的力量很明顯,。我們聽從那些為我們創(chuàng)造東西的人,。“工作崗位創(chuàng)造者”認(rèn)為這是理所當(dāng)然的,。如果投資者階層真的創(chuàng)造了工作崗位,,那么勞工政策就應(yīng)該迎合他們的需求。例如,,高稅收和工會(huì)運(yùn)動(dòng)理應(yīng)受到懷疑,,因?yàn)樗鼈儠?huì)威脅到工作崗位創(chuàng)造者,進(jìn)而威脅到下游的工作人員,。
但這種動(dòng)態(tài)是不正確的,。工作不是由有權(quán)勢的人分配的——這是蘇聯(lián)的奇怪想法。它們受市場力量的支配,,包括新技術(shù),、通貨膨脹和高工資帶來的健康消費(fèi)需求。通過使用這個(gè)短語,,我們過度贊揚(yáng)資本創(chuàng)造的機(jī)會(huì),,并錯(cuò)誤地將業(yè)主和員工的利益混為一談。在最近的參議院和解法案和工會(huì)復(fù)興之后,,我們有必要探究一下放棄使用這一商業(yè)術(shù)語的原因,。
創(chuàng)造就業(yè)機(jī)會(huì)不是企業(yè)成立的目標(biāo)
通常,公司通過采用相反的做法盈利:自動(dòng)化或外包工作,。這是因?yàn)閯趧?dòng)力是一種成本,,而不僅僅是生產(chǎn)引擎。如果理解得當(dāng),,工人們在勞動(dòng)力市場上出售勞動(dòng)力,,就像供應(yīng)商在批發(fā)市場上出售原材料一樣,。公司購買這些勞動(dòng)力和材料來生產(chǎn)消費(fèi)者想要購買的產(chǎn)品。因此,,創(chuàng)造工作崗位是企業(yè)運(yùn)營的一個(gè)中性的,、往往是次要的后果:雇傭額外的員工就像生產(chǎn)本來只需要一噸鋼鐵就行,卻購買了兩噸鋼鐵,。
“工作崗位創(chuàng)造者”也是一個(gè)可疑的概念,,因?yàn)樵S多看似在“創(chuàng)造”工作崗位的公司實(shí)際上在做更復(fù)雜的事情。
以馬庫斯的公司為例,。家得寶在美國約有50萬名員工,,是美國第六大私營雇主。該公司擁有2300家門店,,每家門店約有220名員工,。如果家得寶在你所居住的城鎮(zhèn)開設(shè)新門店,這些新的工作崗位就會(huì)出現(xiàn)——建筑,、航運(yùn),、食品服務(wù)和其他維持這家大型商店運(yùn)營的共生行業(yè)的工作崗位也會(huì)出現(xiàn)。
但這些工作崗位是在什么意義上“創(chuàng)造”出來的呢,?我們很容易就會(huì)發(fā)現(xiàn)這家新的超市將如何取代當(dāng)?shù)氐奈褰鸬旰湍静膹S,,但我們沒有注意到它也取代了這些已經(jīng)倒閉的競爭對(duì)手的工作崗位。
最近的一項(xiàng)研究表明,,電子商務(wù)是當(dāng)今最熱門的就業(yè)類別之一,,自2008年以來,它實(shí)際上已經(jīng)凈減少了超過67萬個(gè)美國就業(yè)崗位,。這對(duì)普通員工來說并不難計(jì)算,,因?yàn)樗麖姆蚱薜甑膬?nèi)部推銷員變成了在電子零售商的倉庫中挑選商品。工作崗位不會(huì)憑空出現(xiàn),;它們隨著市場的創(chuàng)造性破壞而演變,。在許多地方,工作崗位,,就像物質(zhì)一樣,,既不會(huì)被創(chuàng)造,也不會(huì)被摧毀,。
復(fù)雜的關(guān)系
這或許就是賦予“工作崗位創(chuàng)造者”一詞如此強(qiáng)大力量的原因:它不僅假定創(chuàng)造者慷慨大方,,而且還意味著“創(chuàng)造出來”的工作可能會(huì)被奪走。
這個(gè)短語最常見的使用場合是在政治辯論中,。當(dāng)政客們用它來警告我們新的繁文縟節(jié)將如何壓垮投資者時(shí),,他們并不是要我們擔(dān)心會(huì)傷害到那些能夠分辨魚子醬的人。他們要求我們相信,,在傷害投資者的同時(shí),,員工們也會(huì)感受到由此帶來的痛苦。
實(shí)際上,,員工和雇主的利益并不一致,。這種關(guān)系更為復(fù)雜??纯葱前涂俗罱侨绾卧趩T工組織新行動(dòng)的刺激下暫停股票回購,,將資金轉(zhuǎn)移到人力運(yùn)營上的。
工作崗位——也許是更好的工作崗位——以犧牲股東利益為代價(jià),。市場創(chuàng)造機(jī)會(huì),,而員工在工作?!肮ぷ鲘徫粍?chuàng)造者”這一概念是商界最空洞的想法之一,。(財(cái)富中文網(wǎng))
約翰·本杰明(John Benjamin)致力于為美國一線工作人員拓展職業(yè)培訓(xùn)途徑。他目前常駐紐約市,,在哥倫比亞商學(xué)院(Columbia Business School)講授“彌合美國隔閡”(Bridging the American Divide)課程,。
Fortune.com上的評(píng)論文章僅代表作者個(gè)人觀點(diǎn),并不代表《財(cái)富》雜志的立場和觀點(diǎn),。
譯者:中慧言-王芳
可以看出“工作崗位創(chuàng)造者”是一個(gè)有內(nèi)涵的術(shù)語,,因?yàn)樗挥糜谡无q論場合。
是的,,一些企業(yè)主不是在董事會(huì)或內(nèi)部備忘錄中使用這個(gè)術(shù)語,,而是在向公眾捍衛(wèi)自己的利益時(shí)這樣說。多年來,,星巴克(Starbucks)的首席執(zhí)行官霍華德·舒爾茨一直援引這一概念來反對(duì)公眾監(jiān)督,。
家得寶(Home Depot)的創(chuàng)始人伯尼·馬庫斯大力普及這一短語。他的工作崗位創(chuàng)造者網(wǎng)絡(luò)(Job Creators Network)聲稱要“讓政客們對(duì)工作崗位創(chuàng)造者負(fù)責(zé)”,。
在過去的十年里,,這個(gè)術(shù)語在政治家中也迅速流行起來。參議員約翰·科寧最近在開場白中抨擊了《降低通貨膨脹法案》(Inflation Reduction Act):“對(duì)工作崗位創(chuàng)造者提高稅收……只會(huì)讓這場經(jīng)濟(jì)衰退變得更糟,?!彼耐录s翰·圖恩和吉姆·因霍夫回應(yīng)了這些批評(píng)。
商業(yè)術(shù)語漫畫
這個(gè)術(shù)語流行的時(shí)間并不長,?!肮ぷ鲘徫粍?chuàng)造者”一詞誕生于美國前總統(tǒng)羅納德·里根執(zhí)政時(shí)期,一直鮮為人知,,直到21世紀(jì)第一個(gè)十年的中期,,當(dāng)時(shí)媒體為了捍衛(wèi)金融在經(jīng)濟(jì)大蕭條時(shí)期(Great Recession)的作用,重新使用了這個(gè)術(shù)語?,F(xiàn)在,,在關(guān)于稅收和監(jiān)管,、失業(yè)和勞工組織以及介于兩者之間的許多話題的爭論中,這是一種常見的說法,。
這一短語的力量很明顯,。我們聽從那些為我們創(chuàng)造東西的人?!肮ぷ鲘徫粍?chuàng)造者”認(rèn)為這是理所當(dāng)然的,。如果投資者階層真的創(chuàng)造了工作崗位,那么勞工政策就應(yīng)該迎合他們的需求,。例如,,高稅收和工會(huì)運(yùn)動(dòng)理應(yīng)受到懷疑,因?yàn)樗鼈儠?huì)威脅到工作崗位創(chuàng)造者,,進(jìn)而威脅到下游的工作人員,。
但這種動(dòng)態(tài)是不正確的。工作不是由有權(quán)勢的人分配的——這是蘇聯(lián)的奇怪想法,。它們受市場力量的支配,,包括新技術(shù)、通貨膨脹和高工資帶來的健康消費(fèi)需求,。通過使用這個(gè)短語,,我們過度贊揚(yáng)資本創(chuàng)造的機(jī)會(huì),并錯(cuò)誤地將業(yè)主和員工的利益混為一談,。在最近的參議院和解法案和工會(huì)復(fù)興之后,,我們有必要探究一下放棄使用這一商業(yè)術(shù)語的原因。
創(chuàng)造就業(yè)機(jī)會(huì)不是企業(yè)成立的目標(biāo)
通常,,公司通過采用相反的做法盈利:自動(dòng)化或外包工作,。這是因?yàn)閯趧?dòng)力是一種成本,而不僅僅是生產(chǎn)引擎,。如果理解得當(dāng),,工人們在勞動(dòng)力市場上出售勞動(dòng)力,就像供應(yīng)商在批發(fā)市場上出售原材料一樣,。公司購買這些勞動(dòng)力和材料來生產(chǎn)消費(fèi)者想要購買的產(chǎn)品,。因此,創(chuàng)造工作崗位是企業(yè)運(yùn)營的一個(gè)中性的,、往往是次要的后果:雇傭額外的員工就像生產(chǎn)本來只需要一噸鋼鐵就行,,卻購買了兩噸鋼鐵。
“工作崗位創(chuàng)造者”也是一個(gè)可疑的概念,,因?yàn)樵S多看似在“創(chuàng)造”工作崗位的公司實(shí)際上在做更復(fù)雜的事情,。
以馬庫斯的公司為例。家得寶在美國約有50萬名員工,,是美國第六大私營雇主,。該公司擁有2300家門店,,每家門店約有220名員工。如果家得寶在你所居住的城鎮(zhèn)開設(shè)新門店,,這些新的工作崗位就會(huì)出現(xiàn)——建筑,、航運(yùn)、食品服務(wù)和其他維持這家大型商店運(yùn)營的共生行業(yè)的工作崗位也會(huì)出現(xiàn),。
但這些工作崗位是在什么意義上“創(chuàng)造”出來的呢?我們很容易就會(huì)發(fā)現(xiàn)這家新的超市將如何取代當(dāng)?shù)氐奈褰鸬旰湍静膹S,,但我們沒有注意到它也取代了這些已經(jīng)倒閉的競爭對(duì)手的工作崗位,。
最近的一項(xiàng)研究表明,電子商務(wù)是當(dāng)今最熱門的就業(yè)類別之一,,自2008年以來,,它實(shí)際上已經(jīng)凈減少了超過67萬個(gè)美國就業(yè)崗位。這對(duì)普通員工來說并不難計(jì)算,,因?yàn)樗麖姆蚱薜甑膬?nèi)部推銷員變成了在電子零售商的倉庫中挑選商品,。工作崗位不會(huì)憑空出現(xiàn);它們隨著市場的創(chuàng)造性破壞而演變,。在許多地方,,工作崗位,就像物質(zhì)一樣,,既不會(huì)被創(chuàng)造,,也不會(huì)被摧毀。
復(fù)雜的關(guān)系
這或許就是賦予“工作崗位創(chuàng)造者”一詞如此強(qiáng)大力量的原因:它不僅假定創(chuàng)造者慷慨大方,,而且還意味著“創(chuàng)造出來”的工作可能會(huì)被奪走,。
這個(gè)短語最常見的使用場合是在政治辯論中。當(dāng)政客們用它來警告我們新的繁文縟節(jié)將如何壓垮投資者時(shí),,他們并不是要我們擔(dān)心會(huì)傷害到那些能夠分辨魚子醬的人,。他們要求我們相信,在傷害投資者的同時(shí),,員工們也會(huì)感受到由此帶來的痛苦,。
實(shí)際上,員工和雇主的利益并不一致,。這種關(guān)系更為復(fù)雜,。看看星巴克最近是如何在員工組織新行動(dòng)的刺激下暫停股票回購,,將資金轉(zhuǎn)移到人力運(yùn)營上的,。
工作崗位——也許是更好的工作崗位——以犧牲股東利益為代價(jià)。市場創(chuàng)造機(jī)會(huì),,而員工在工作,?!肮ぷ鲘徫粍?chuàng)造者”這一概念是商界最空洞的想法之一。(財(cái)富中文網(wǎng))
約翰·本杰明(John Benjamin)致力于為美國一線工作人員拓展職業(yè)培訓(xùn)途徑,。他目前常駐紐約市,,在哥倫比亞商學(xué)院(Columbia Business School)講授“彌合美國隔閡”(Bridging the American Divide)課程。
Fortune.com上的評(píng)論文章僅代表作者個(gè)人觀點(diǎn),,并不代表《財(cái)富》雜志的立場和觀點(diǎn),。
譯者:中慧言-王芳
You can tell “job creator” is a loaded term because it’s only used in political debates.
Yes, some business owners say it, not in boardrooms or internal memos, but rather when defending their role to the public. For years, Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz has invoked the concept against public scrutiny.
Bernie Marcus, the founder of The Home Depot, is the chief popularizer of the phrase. His Job Creators Network purports to “hold politicians accountable to job creators.”
Over the last decade, the term has also exploded in popularity among politicians. Senator John Cornyn recently blasted the Inflation Reduction Act with the opening line, “raising taxes on job creators… will only make this recession worse.” His colleagues John Thune and Jim Inhofe echoed these critiques.
A cartoon piece of business jargon
The term hasn’t been popular for long. Born under Ronald Reagan, “job creator” remained fairly obscure until the mid-2000s, when the media revived it to defend the role of finance in the Great Recession. Now it’s a common piece of rhetoric in arguments about taxes and regulation, unemployment and labor organizing, and many topics in between.
The phrase has obvious power. We defer to those who make things for us. “Job creator” takes this for granted. If the investor class really is the source of jobs, then labor policy should cater to their needs. Higher taxes and union drives, for instance, should be treated skeptically, because they’ll threaten job creators and hence job-doers downstream.
But this dynamic isn’t true. Jobs are not disbursed by powerful people–a bizarrely Soviet idea. They’re governed by market forces, including new technology, inflation, and healthy consumer demand from good wages. By using the phrase we give capital undue credit for creating opportunity, and falsely conflate the interests of owners and workers. In the wake of the recent Senate reconciliation bill and renewed unionizing, it’s worth exploring the reasons to abandon this cartoon piece of business jargon.
Creating jobs isn’t the goal of business formation
Often, companies win by doing the opposite: automating away or outsourcing work. This is because labor is a cost, not just an engine of production. Properly understood, workers sell their labor in a labor market like suppliers sell raw materials in wholesale markets. Companies buy this labor and material to churn out things that customers, in turn, want to buy. Creating jobs is thus a neutral and often secondary consequence of business operations: hiring an extra worker is like buying two tons of steel when one would need to.
“Job creator” is also a dubious concept because many firms which seem to be “making” jobs are really doing something more complicated.
Consider Marcus’s company as an example. The Home Depot has about 500,000 employees in the U.S., making it our sixth largest private employer. With 2,300 locations, that’s about 220 employees per store. Should a new Home Depot move into your town, these new jobs will become available–along with jobs in construction, shipping, food services, and other symbiotic industries that keep the mega-store running.
But in what sense were these jobs “created”? We can easily see how this new superstore will replace the local hardware shop and lumberyard, but we don’t notice the jobs it also displaces from these defunct competitors.
A recent study shows that e-commerce, one of the hottest categories of employment today, has actually eliminated over 670,000 net U.S. jobs since 2008. This isn’t hard for the average worker to compute, as he shuffles from in-house sales at a mom-and-pop shop to picking in an e-retailer’s warehouse. Jobs don’t arise in a vacuum; they evolve with the creative destruction of markets. In many local contexts, jobs, like matter, are neither created nor destroyed.
A complex relationship
That is perhaps what gives “job creator” such potency: Not only does it assume generosity, but it also implies a job that was “created” can be taken away.
In political debates, this is the most common function of the phrase. When politicians use it to warn us how new red tape will crush investors, they’re not asking us to worry about hurting people who can tell the difference between caviars. They’re asking us to believe that, in hurting them, workers will feel pain too.
In reality, the interests of workers and owners don’t automatically align. The relationship is more complex. Just see how, spurred by employees’ new organizing push, Starbucks recently paused stock buybacks to divert funds to people operations.
Jobs–and perhaps better jobs–can come at the expense of shareholders. Markets create the opportunities–and people do the work. The concept of “job creators” is one of the emptiest ideas in business.
John Benjamin works in developing career training pathways for America’s frontline workers. He’s based in New York City and lectures as part of Columbia Business School’s course on Bridging the American Divide.
The opinions expressed in Fortune.com commentary pieces are solely the views of their authors and do not reflect the opinions and beliefs of Fortune.