Hidden Exploitation

Apologies for the lack of a blog entry yesterday. Everyone has a sick day, and yesterday was mine. I will also be off line on Monday, as it is my partner's birthday and we’ll be spending the day at the beach.

So, with all my travels and sick days I’ve gotten a bit behind in my emails. As I’m catching up, I start reading a thread on one of the lists I’m subscribed to. It caught my interest because the original message was asking for information about hiring peer leaders. As people responded with their experiences, one response caught my attention:

“Teenagers have been some of my best workers...they don't cost as much and they know the community.”

Here we have an example of one of my biggest pet peeves; a well-intentioned advocate for young people who, without even realizing it, is exploiting young people. If you think I’m being too harsh, let’s change the population and read this again:

“Illegal immigrants have been some of my best workers...they don't cost as much and they know the community.”

Or …

“African-Americans have been some of my best workers...they don't cost as much and they know the community.”

Does that make the exploitation a bit more obvious? Basically we’re saying; I want to hire ‘these people’ because they bring something of value to me that I can’t get anywhere else (they know the population). And, while I benefit from this special skill, I get to pay them less than I would pay somebody else doing the same job!’

That’s why things like this are a pet peeve of mine. I’m sure whoever wrote this is an advocate for young people, and is creating opportunities for young people to be involved. Yet, at the same time and without even realizing it, they are part of the exploitation and discounting of young people that they are seeking to change.