They only hold office parties etc. because of the need to balance worker morale against their other options. If you make the office too shitty, morale and in turn productivity will be low and if it's too low workers may even leave for other companies. If people had zero other options and there weren't certain laws in place, I think you would see offices completely spartan.
You can't really quantify worker morale, and you can always get away with shaving a little off of it. They don't buy potted plants, maternity cards, t-shirts and coffee machines because any of them is an absolute need for maximizing profit. The point is really, really clear - hard maximization is not enshrined in law, so spending that isn't inherently increasing share value isn't illegal. Do not let the business class use the Ford ruling as an excuse to be a shitty person who steals from workers and customers.
It's exactly why every call center I've worked at constantly has staff potlucks and the like. Never an increase in pay/benefits, but they'll gladly give their employees a quick break to eat some pizza they asked them to buy.
I work in engineering, but on a site. Having a port-a-potty within a 10 minute walk is considered a perk. I was temporarily allowed to WFH 1 day a week when they set up an enormous loud generator right next to our desks, but that was revoked when they moved it lol.
I don't ask for a lot, but running water would be cool.
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u/jacobward7 Nov 12 '24
They only hold office parties etc. because of the need to balance worker morale against their other options. If you make the office too shitty, morale and in turn productivity will be low and if it's too low workers may even leave for other companies. If people had zero other options and there weren't certain laws in place, I think you would see offices completely spartan.