Nurses (was Re: [lbo-talk] Marriage and Prostitution)

John Lacny jlacny at earthlink.net
Tue May 10 12:09:11 PDT 2005


Michael Dawson sneers thus at the women who make up the nursing profession:


> $66,352
>
> Median staff RN salary, SF, according to salary.com.
>
> This is the pinnacle of proledom.

Professor, there are plenty of workers -- "proles" even -- who make more than that because of unions. Autoworkers and steelworkers and construction workers -- all traditionally male occupations, unlike the nurses you snicker at -- would all get classified as "proletarians" even by the schematic, old-line vulgar-Marxist standards you no doubt adhere to, and yet they make a lot more money and their conditions of work are appreciably better because of the fruits of struggle over the decades. RNs are making more money these days because of the shortage that Jim Westrich talks about, among other reasons -- and in San Francisco in particular, RNs' appreciable wage gains have a lot to do with union struggle too, on the part of both SEIU and CNA.

Jim Westrich has already said a number of the things that I would have said about how an RN's work life is not exactly cushy, so I won't add any more. But I will say that I find your attitude toward workers contemptible, particularly your attitude to female workers and your attempt to use the profession of another member of the list as a way to score bizarre "points" against her that have nothing to do with the discussion at hand.

- - - - - - - - - - John Lacny http://www.johnlacny.com

Tell no lies, claim no easy victories



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