[Jewelry making - Article 00340] - Re: [Orchid] Self taught Vs Formal training

[John Donivan]

========[ Invite a Friend - http://www.ganoksin.com/invite.htm  ]========

>     On the contrary, carefully collected statistics are the basis of a
>     rather significant part of a number of the technologies I am
>     personally most familiar with. For two examples, consider plant
>     and animal selective breeding programs, and Quantum Mechanics. 

    My mother read a book in the early sixties - maybe it was Gloria
    Steinham, I don't know. Ever since then she pounded home in us (me)
    the need, truth, and necessity for gender equality. Which is to say
    I'm on your side. It's an interesting discussion, though. First off, 
I
    know what statistics are about. All you need to do to show the
    validity in this case is to show me a women. Or a men. Since there's
    no such thing as a women, well, it looks pretty silly, doesn't it? In
    today's paper there's an article about the class action gender-bias
    suit against Wal-Mart. The interesting part about it, to me, was the
    dissenting opinion, which is backed up by rulings in federal courts:
    It can't be a class action because the issues are subjective to each
    situation. In other words, people are not statistics or
    "worker-units", they are human beings, and behave as such. Genetics
    and quantum mechanics are hard science. People are not science at 
all.
    Or, as I like to say, "There's two kinds of people in the world:
    People who think there's two kinds of people, and people who don't."
    The other issue at work is not gender specific: What does equal work
    for equal pay mean? That cannot be addressed from the worker side,
    it's management. Is the person really doing equal work? Maybe the job
    description is the same. But: Has the other person been there for 5
    years and had 3 raises from base? When a piece of equipment needs
    maintenance, who does that? When some labor is needed, who does that?
    Do they possess leadership skills (not a desire to be in control -
    the ability to compel others to follow)? Problem solving skills? Are
    they part of the team? Do they seem to be in for the long term? Which
    is the greater overall asset to the company? Which shows the most
    promise for the future? Is the work really the same, or does one just
    think it is? It is these things that are meaningful, not simply
    ticking off, "Male, $15, Female $12.50." Or Black or Asian or
    whatever. Now, I'm not by any means trying to deny that there is
    inequity. And I do understand that I can never know what it is to be
    descriminated against that way, though I did work in a woman-owned
    shop that was a bit like that towards men. My only point is that
    since it's about human beings, not "worker-units", it is by
    definition going to be more complex than that. 

http://www.donivanandmaggiora.com
____________________________________________________________________
T h e   O r c h i d   L i s t
Open Electronic Forum for Jewelry Manufacturing Methods and Procedures
____________________________________________________________________
Orchid FAQ:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/orchid/faq.htm
Orchid Archives:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/orchid/archive
Orchid Galleries:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/orchid/gallery.htm
Invite a Friend:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/invite.htm
____________________________________________________________________
Tips From The Jeweler's Bench - Article Archive
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/borisat/tip_sear.htm
The Jeweler's Selected Bibliography List
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/jewelry-books
Buy Orchid Jewelry:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/shop
____________________________________________________________________
-Unsubscribe:
-Email: orchid-request AT ganoksin.com Body=unsubscribe subject=blank
____________________________________________________________________