Boston Basic Income

129 — Workers vs Consumers


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Henry Ford famously insisted on paying his workers enough money to be able to buy the very cars they were producing.  But to what extent does that make sense?  When is it useful to think of workers and consumers as the same people?  Does basic income create a disconnect between these two roles?  Is that a problem?


We have two optional readings this week.  The first is a 2011 blog post by former labor secretary Robert Reich entitled "Stock Tip: Be Worried. Workers are Consumers"

The second is a 2012 article on Big Think by David Berreby entitled "When Consumers Forget They're Also Workers, Everyone Suffers"

Previous related Boston Basic Income topics have included:
BBI #14 — Technological Unemployment
BBI #33 — Basic Income vs Job Guarantee
BBI #56 — Workism

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Boston Basic IncomeBy Alex Howlett