Trade-offs and Triumphs

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Trade-offs and Triumphs #6

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Trade-offs and Triumphs #6

Issue 6: How Labor Day Got Started, The Effect of COVID19 on Families, and From the Archives of Open Culture

Jenny Kim
Sep 8, 2020
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Trade-offs and Triumphs #6

jennykim.substack.com

Hello, friends! Thank you for subscribing, and welcome to my new subscribers!

I appreciate your time and wisdom.

It is Labor Day here in the United States. If you are spending time with your loved ones and enjoying the last golden rays of summer, breathe deeply and treasure time that will not return.

If tomorrow is the first day of school - virtually or in-person - good luck! Sharpened pencils, notebook, a laptop - what more would you need to start off the school year or to keep the school year going in style?

Photo by JESHOOTS.com from Pexels


How Labor Day Got Started

But Labor Day did not become a national holiday until President Cleveland forgot about the people who elected him and had to regain their trust. Unfortunately, he made some poor choices that resulted in people dying, an upset country, and also pulled in the United States Postal Service.

Which just shows you that history seems to repeat itself.

Josh Cadorette explains the who, what, when, where, and how of the events that led to Labor Day’s becoming a national holiday in the Twitter thread below.

Twitter avatar for @joshcadorette
Josh Cadorette @joshcadorette
Almost Labor Day! A history of the late summer holiday‘s origin. ☀️
3:58 PM ∙ Sep 4, 2020
Twitter avatar for @joshcadorette
Josh Cadorette @joshcadorette
1/ May 1894. The Pullman Strike. The economy was in trouble. Industrialist George Pullman made the following labor decisions for his railroad company: • Cut down his workforce • Slashed wages • Increased hours for those still employed
3:58 PM ∙ Sep 4, 2020
Twitter avatar for @joshcadorette
Josh Cadorette @joshcadorette
2/ Mr. Pullman also had say over the company town (aptly named “Pullman,” which is now a section of Chicago). Mr. Pullman made the following decisions for the town: • Keep rent steady • Keep prices of goods steady
3:58 PM ∙ Sep 4, 2020
Twitter avatar for @joshcadorette
Josh Cadorette @joshcadorette
3/ Workers were upset. Less pay. Same expenses. Many unemployed. They were bearing the cost of the recession. They went on strike. What started in Pullman began to spread. Trains, the primary way of transporting goods in the late 19th century, came to a halt.
3:58 PM ∙ Sep 4, 2020
Twitter avatar for @joshcadorette
Josh Cadorette @joshcadorette
4/ Enter the US Postal Service amidst political controversy. And I’m not talking about 2020.
3:58 PM ∙ Sep 4, 2020
Twitter avatar for @joshcadorette
Josh Cadorette @joshcadorette
5/ I'm talking about the late 19th century when President Grover Cleveland came to George Pullman's support w/ a court injunction halting the strike due to the fact that the USPS relied on trains to transport mail.
3:58 PM ∙ Sep 4, 2020
Twitter avatar for @joshcadorette
Josh Cadorette @joshcadorette
7/ What happened? Workers ignored the President. Federal Troops were sent in. 30 workers died and 57 more were injured in clashes with the troops.
3:58 PM ∙ Sep 4, 2020
Twitter avatar for @joshcadorette
Josh Cadorette @joshcadorette
8/ People across the country were upset. President Cleveland had to regain trust w/ American workers. He turned to a holiday first celebrated by the Central Labor Union in NYC on September 5th, 1882. The holiday was a late summer celebration of the rights of American workers.
3:58 PM ∙ Sep 4, 2020
Twitter avatar for @joshcadorette
Josh Cadorette @joshcadorette
9/ President Cleveland, in an effort to rebuild ties with American workers, authorized this late summer celebration as a national holiday to give workers a day off and try to show support for their rights. And thus, Labor Day was born.
3:58 PM ∙ Sep 4, 2020

Thank you to Kyle Bowe for introducing me to Josh Cadorette.

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The Effect of COVID19 on Families

If you ask someone about why they work hard, it usually comes down to one of two reasons (or, sometimes both):

  • They want to provide for their families so that they can create more memories together, and/or

  • They love what they do.

Families are the cornerstone of our communities, and for some (like me), sustaining our families is akin to religion. So, if you can spend time with your families during this period of social distancing, you love what you do, and you are not forced to make a trade-off between your family and earning a living, then you are fortunate.

But not all families are this blessed - whether you have a position that permits you to work from home or mandates that you come to the workplace everyday, for many who have children, childcare is the major conundrum. As children head back to school, the lack of childcare options and the realities of remote learning are hurting single parents more in terms building a financial safety net. What hurts parents hurts children and the family - according to the Pew Research Center, in 2019, an estimated 23% of American kids, or 17 million, live with a single parent, the highest share in the world.

This lack of a financial safety net has negatively impacted families for years. COVID19 may be the opportunity to change that narrative by experimenting and iterating. For example, earlier this summer, Avni Patel Thompson shared 12 ideas in the Twitter thread below to help families sustain themselves and not make a trade-off between financial security and time:

Twitter avatar for @APatelThompson
Avni Patel Thompson @APatelThompson
👩‍👩‍👧‍👦👪👨‍👦Families are the cornerstone of society but foundation has been crumbling for some time. Post-COVID? It's about to topple. Maybe now is time to tear it all down and build it to be future we all want + need to live in. Here are 12 ideas on where to start. In future: 🧵
8:44 PM ∙ Jul 21, 2020
65Likes14Retweets

But families are more than just parents and children - there are the elders as well. There has been a lot of chatter about mature children moving back in with their parents. But as Juvoni Beckford eloquently points out, we also need to consider the elders who raised us, and the stakes get higher when that elder is a single parent who sacrificed so much so that you could achieve your dreams.

Twitter avatar for @juvoni
Juvoni Beckford @juvoni
Some have the option to move in with their parents. But when you're raised by a single mom & she asks you where can she live? The emotional toll hits very differently. The stake is much higher. Shout out to those grinding to provide for their family, we'll get thru this 💪🏾
4:52 PM ∙ Sep 7, 2020
14Likes2Retweets

Because isolation from our families is bad for everyone - parents, children, elders, and any extended family. We need to be more proactive about childcare and eldercare options, because without nurturing potential and taking care of the past, we will not have a future.

If you are managing employees who have childcare and/or eldercare issues:

  • Listen, don’t respond. Make lots of mental notes.

  • Figure out how to support your employees and be flexible - remember, both you and your employees need to operate as rubber balls that bounce.

  • Prioritize and discuss both professional and personal milestones. Do this for all your teammates and for those you work with closely - remember, in this era, your team is more than just your direct reports.

  • Finally, remember to take care of yourself too.

I would love to hear from you about how you and your families are coping with COVID19 and social distancing - you can reach me at jennykimwop@gmail.com or on Twitter at @jennykim.

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From the Archives of Open Culture - Photo of the NYC Jazz Greats and Sample Album Cover Art by Andy Warhol

Alas, I return to the city in which I grew up - New York City. Music and art were two subjects in high school I both adored and hated. I could sing but I could not play an instrument; I loved to examine and interpret art, but I could not draw at all.

It seemed that there were not trade-offs I could make to become an accomplished pianist or artist.

Luckily, I don’t need to play an instrument to enjoy listening to the jazz greats, or be able to draw to admire Andy Warhol’s album cover creations for the great jazz artists - all incredibly labor intensive but somehow seemingly easy.

Open Culture is like an attic that you can explore on a rainy day, and you are not sure what you will find. So let serendipity rule and meander through this site.

Twitter avatar for @openculture
Open Culture @openculture
"A Great Day in Harlem," Art Kane’s Iconic Photo of 57 Jazz Legends (with a Detailed Listing of Who Appears in the Photo) openculture.com/?p=1057726
Image
Image
6:45 PM ∙ Sep 7, 2020
91Likes36Retweets

Album Cover Art by Andy Warhol


Have any questions or comments? Let’s chat!

Want to exchange some thoughts over Twitter? You can find me @jennykim

Check out my website for more: puttingittogether.blog

See you next week!

And remember to find that trade-off that will lead to that triumph this week, no matter how small, and celebrate it.

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Trade-offs and Triumphs #6

jennykim.substack.com
4 Comments
Zen Yinger
Sep 14, 2020Liked by Jenny Kim

It's a tough time for so many among us, Jenny. Great insights.

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1 reply by Jenny Kim
Nate Kadlac
Writes Plan Your Next
Sep 8, 2020Liked by Jenny Kim

Well done! Learned a lot in this letter!

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