When the world was in the depths of this gruesome pandemic, the world's billionaires were carrying on like it wasn't happening.

The likes of Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos were pursuing their pet projects, firing themselves into space, titling crypto-currency markets off their axis at a whim, and acting like they didn't have a care in the world.

Recently, Musk has stepped up his narcissistic indulgences, launching a hostile takeover bid for one of the world's biggest and most influential social media platforms, Twitter. At the same time, the Tesla founder has been playing footsy with the libertarian/alt-right, blabbing on about freedom of speech, and promising to unleash the dogs of hate speech and misinformation back onto the platform.

Is it healthy that one individual can amass such outsized wealth and influence whilst tens of millions of people struggle to make a living? What is the danger that the billionaire class poses to the health of our societies?

John L. Campbell is a sociologist and economist at Dartmouth University in New Hampshire in the United States. He's been writing about these very issues. John joins us on this week's pod.

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* You can now email us with your comments, story ideas, tip-offs, flip offs, and questions - otjpodcast@protonmail.com


*On the Job is made by Australian Unions.

More about On The Job podcast

 

Need help with working conditions?

Call Australian Union Support Centre - 1300 486 466

 

About the hosts

Sally Rugg - @sallyrugg

Francis Leach, ACTU - @SaintFrankly

When the world was in the depths of this gruesome pandemic, the world's billionaires were carrying on like it wasn't happening. The likes of Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos were pursuing their pet projects, firing themselves into space, titling crypto-currency markets off their axis at a whim, and acting like they didn't have a care in the world. Recently, Musk has stepped up his narcissistic indulgences, launching a hostile takeover bid for one of the world's biggest and most influential social media platforms, Twitter. At the same time, the Tesla founder has been playing footsy with the libertarian/alt-right, blabbing on about freedom of speech, and promising to unleash the dogs of hate speech and misinformation back onto the platform. Is it healthy that one individual can amass such outsized wealth and influence whilst tens of millions of people struggle to make a living? What is the danger that the billionaire class poses to the health of our societies? John L. Campbell is a sociologist and economist at Dartmouth University in New Hampshire in the United States. He's been <a href="https://www.marketwatch.com/story/elon-musks-twitter-gambit-is-another-reminder-that-americas-billionaires-need-to-pay-more-in-taxes-11651001586">writing about these very issues.</a> John joins us on this week's pod.
_____________________________________________________________
* You can now email us with your comments, story ideas, tip-offs, flip offs, and questions -&nbsp;<a href="mailto:otjpodcast@protonmail.com">otjpodcast@protonmail.com</a>
 *On the Job is made by Australian Unions.
<a href="https://www.onthejobpodcast.com.au/">More about On The Job podcast</a>
&nbsp;
Need help with working conditions?
Call <a href="https://actuonline.nationbuilder.com/">Australian Union Support Centre</a> - <a href="tel:1300486466">1300 486 466</a>
&nbsp;
About the hosts
Sally Rugg - <a href="https://twitter.com/sallyrugg">@sallyrugg</a>
Francis Leach, ACTU -&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/SaintFrankly">@SaintFrankly</a>

The way we work, how work is changing, how it used to be and what it might look like in the future.

It’s about who we work with, and who we work for.

It’s a discussion about the conditions in which we work and the demands of a job.

It’s talking about how it can be the best thing in our lives and also the worst.

Work can give us meaning and satisfaction, it can be the most challenging thing we’ve ever done and the most soul destroying days of our lives.

And that can all be in the same week!

Above all, we want to talk about work in a way that helps make work better for everyone
who listens.

Authorised by Sally McManus, Australian Council of Trade Unions, Melbourne.

The way we work, how work is changing, how it used to be and what it might look like in the future.
It&rsquo;s about who we work with, and who we work for.
It&rsquo;s a discussion about the conditions in which we work and the demands of a job.
It&rsquo;s talking about how it can be the best thing in our lives and also the worst.
Work can give us meaning and satisfaction, it can be the most challenging thing we&rsquo;ve ever done and the most soul destroying days of our lives.
And that can all be in the same week!
Above all, we want to talk about work in a way that helps make work better for everyone who listens. Authorised by Sally McManus, Australian Council of Trade Unions, Melbourne.

Dream Job, Cash gig, career move, a job for life or the job from hell.. On the job is a here to talk to you about your working life.

On The Job

The way we work, how work is changing, how it used to be and what it might look like in the future.

It’s about who we work with, and who we work for.

It’s a discussion about the conditions in which we work and the demands of a job.

It’s talking about how it can be the best thing in our lives and also the worst.

Work can give us meaning and satisfaction, it can be the most challenging thing we’ve ever done and the most soul destroying days of our lives.

And that can all be in the same week!

Above all, we want to talk about work in a way that helps make work better for everyone
who listens.

The way we work, how work is changing, how it used to be and what it might look like in the future.
It&rsquo;s about who we work with, and who we work for.
It&rsquo;s a discussion about the conditions in which we work and the demands of a job.
It&rsquo;s talking about how it can be the best thing in our lives and also the worst.
Work can give us meaning and satisfaction, it can be the most challenging thing we&rsquo;ve ever done and the most soul destroying days of our lives.
And that can all be in the same week!
Above all, we want to talk about work in a way that helps make work better for everyone who listens.

Elon Musk, Twitter, and why billionaires are a bad idea

On The Job is back and with new hosts: Kleo Cruse and Emma Hartley. This episode is for all workers with a reproductive system – yes, that’s you!

The social stigma attached to menstruation and menopause often means workers are enduring the pain of normal bodily functions in silence.

We chat to Ann-Marie Allan from the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union and Kate Marshall from the Health And Community Services Union about how reproductive leave can help ease some of that pain.

Keen to have reproductive leave at your workplace? Get things kickstarted by joining your union.

On The Job is back and with new hosts: Kleo Cruse and Emma Hartley. This episode is for all workers with a reproductive system – yes, that’s you!
The social stigma attached to menstruation and menopause often means workers are enduring the pain of normal bodily functions in silence.
We chat to Ann-Marie Allan from the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union and Kate Marshall from the Health And Community Services Union about how reproductive leave can help ease some of that pain.
Keen to have reproductive leave at your workplace? Get things kickstarted by <a href="https://www.australianunions.org.au/action/for-the-workers/">joining your union</a>.

Pain, periods, perimenopause: why workplaces need reproductive leave (part one)

The last pod in our summer series takes a look at one of 2022's best pieces of investigative journalism.

Since it arrived on our streets over a decade ago, Uber has prided itself on being a "disrupter" with little regard for convention.

At the heart of their business model is a fanatical commitment to upend the employer/employee relationship and create a new army of sole contractors working on their tech platform with Uber having no responsibility for them, and with drivers having no rights and entitlements.

This high-tech exploitation has made it a massive company that has caused controversy wherever it goes.

In July of 2022 the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) dropped a trove of documents and emails from Uber's inner sanctum that reveal how the company was able to curry favour with governments and institutions around the world to achieve its aims.

The Uber Files are a stunning insight into how Uber inveigled their way into the realm of prime ministers, presidents, bureaucrats and power brokers to get things done. 

Fergus Shiel is the Managing Editor of the ICIJ. He oversaw the Uber Files project.

Fergus joined us on the line from his home in Washington DC to discuss the contents of the Uber Files and their implication.



You can now email us with your comments, story ideas, tip-offs, flip offs, and questions - otjpodcast@protonmail.com


On the Job is made by Australian Unions.

More about On The Job podcast


Need help with working conditions?

Call Australian Union Support Centre - 1300 486 466



About the host

Francis Leach is Editor at Large for the Australian Council of Trade Unions

Twitter - @SaintFrankly

The last pod in our summer series takes a look at one of 2022's best pieces of investigative journalism.
Since it arrived on our streets over a decade ago, Uber has prided itself on being a "disrupter" with little regard for convention. At the heart of their business model is a fanatical commitment to upend the employer/employee relationship and create a new army of sole contractors working on their tech platform with Uber having no responsibility for them, and with drivers having no rights and entitlements.
This high-tech exploitation has made it a massive company that has caused controversy wherever it goes. In July of 2022 the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) dropped a trove of documents and emails from Uber's inner sanctum that reveal how the company was able to curry favour with governments and institutions around the world to achieve its aims.
<a href="https://www.icij.org/investigations/uber-files/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.icij.org/investigations/uber-files/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1671758693665000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1qAuBdm7PMR_Tt5kbWS-8R">The Uber Files</a> are a stunning insight into how Uber inveigled their way into the realm of prime ministers, presidents, bureaucrats and power brokers to get things done. <a href="https://www.icij.org/journalists/fergus-shiel/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.icij.org/journalists/fergus-shiel/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1671758693665000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0iCVpjy5F-ywUvPvw8le26"></a>
<a href="https://www.icij.org/journalists/fergus-shiel/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.icij.org/journalists/fergus-shiel/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1671758693665000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0iCVpjy5F-ywUvPvw8le26">Fergus Shiel</a> is the Managing Editor of the ICIJ. He oversaw the Uber Files project.
Fergus joined us on the line from his home in Washington DC to discuss the contents of the Uber Files and their implication.
 
You can now email us with your comments, story ideas, tip-offs, flip offs, and questions - <a href="mailto:otjpodcast@protonmail.com">otjpodcast@protonmail.com</a>
 On the Job is made by <a href="https://www.australianunions.org.au/">Australian Unions</a>.
<a href="https://www.onthejobpodcast.com.au/">More about On The Job podcast</a>
 Need help with working conditions?
Call <a href="https://actuonline.nationbuilder.com/">Australian Union Support Centre</a> - <a href="tel:1300486466">1300 486 466</a>
 
About the host
Francis Leach is Editor at Large for the Australian Council of Trade Unions
Twitter - <a href="https://twitter.com/SaintFrankly">@SaintFrankly</a>

Summer Series - The Uber Files

This week in our summer series, we head back to August 2022 to examine the growing demands for food assistance from workers and their families.

The promise of the Australian Dream is that you should be able to work one decent, secure job and earn enough pay to put a roof over your head, support your family and thrive.

That all seems like a pipe dream in the current climate, where insecure work, no entitlements, climbing inflation, and a housing squeeze means that hard-working Australians are driven to the margins.

Many of them are turning to organisations like Foodbank to help them make ends meet.

Foodbank is Australia’s largest food relief organisation, operating on a scale that makes it crucial to the work of the front-line charities who are feeding vulnerable Australians.

Foodbank provides more than 70% of the food rescued for food relief organisations nationwide.

Matt Tilley is acting of CEO at Foodbank in Victoria.

He joins us on the pod.



You can now email us with your comments, story ideas, tip-offs, flip offs, and questions - otjpodcast@protonmail.com


On the Job is made by Australian Unions.

More about On The Job podcast


Need help with working conditions?

Call Australian Union Support Centre - 1300 486 466



About the host

Francis Leach is Editor at Large for the Australian Council of Trade Unions

Twitter - @SaintFrankly

This week in our summer series, we head back to August 2022 to examine the growing demands for food assistance from workers and their families.
The promise of the Australian Dream is that you should be able to work one decent, secure job and earn enough pay to put a roof over your head, support your family and thrive.
That all seems like a pipe dream in the current climate, where insecure work, no entitlements, climbing inflation, and a housing squeeze means that hard-working Australians are driven to the margins.
Many of them are turning to organisations like Foodbank to help them make ends meet.
Foodbank is Australia’s largest food relief organisation, operating on a scale that makes it crucial to the work of the front-line charities who are feeding vulnerable Australians.
Foodbank provides more than 70% of the food rescued for food relief organisations nationwide.
Matt Tilley is acting of CEO at <a href="https://www.foodbank.org.au/?state=vic" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.foodbank.org.au/?state%3Dvic&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1671758693665000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1i64pYBYohmOl5SSDTSwXf">Foodbank in Victoria</a>.
He joins us on the pod.
 
You can now email us with your comments, story ideas, tip-offs, flip offs, and questions - <a href="mailto:otjpodcast@protonmail.com">otjpodcast@protonmail.com</a>
 On the Job is made by <a href="https://www.australianunions.org.au/">Australian Unions</a>.
<a href="https://www.onthejobpodcast.com.au/">More about On The Job podcast</a>
 Need help with working conditions?
Call <a href="https://actuonline.nationbuilder.com/">Australian Union Support Centre</a> - <a href="tel:1300486466">1300 486 466</a>
 
About the host
Francis Leach is Editor at Large for the Australian Council of Trade Unions
Twitter - <a href="https://twitter.com/SaintFrankly">@SaintFrankly</a>

Elon Musk, Twitter, and why billionaires are a bad idea

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