Employment, Reimagined: Beyond the Old Paradigm

Traditionally, we’ve thought of employment as simply trading labor for wages. If you have a job, you earn money; if you don’t, you struggle. This narrow definition leaves out countless ways people serve their communities—caregiving, studying, volunteering, creative pursuits—without a direct paycheck. More importantly, it also forces many to settle for jobs they don’t truly enjoy, purely for financial security. In this chapter, we’ll broaden our perspective on what “employment” can and should be in a fair, future-facing society.

An Illustrative Example
Imagine someone who loves teaching. If salaries for teachers are too low, that person may feel compelled to pursue a higher-paying job in, say, software development—even if their real passion (and arguably, greatest societal contribution) lies in education. This isn’t just a hypothetical; it happens often in countries like India, where teaching can be poorly paid. As a side effect, many who do become teachers might be those who couldn’t find other, more lucrative jobs. This can hurt educational quality, because teaching roles may be filled by individuals doing it out of necessity rather than passion or skill.

Why This Matters

• Lost Talent: Society misses out when highly capable potential teachers, social workers, or environmentalists choose other fields purely for financial reasons.
• Quality Deficit: Certain professions—especially in caregiving and education—end up with mixed motivation, which can diminish the value delivered to students, patients, or communities.
• Personal Dissatisfaction: Individuals forced into unfulfilling roles experience stress, reduced well-being, and less engagement, further eroding overall productivity.

Reimagining employment means freeing people to contribute where they’re most passionate and effective, rather than purely where they can secure the highest wage.

One way to encourage people into roles they excel at—and that society critically needs—is by merit points, factoring in:

1. Hours Contributed: The more time someone devotes to essential roles (teaching, caregiving, volunteering, etc.), the more merit points they might accumulate.
2. Social Impact: Activities with high societal impact—teaching, medical care, environmental protection—could earn additional merit points or perks. For example, an environmentalist restoring wetlands might receive more points than someone entertaining people in a purely profit-based context.
3. Balance & Fairness: Entertainment or hospitality roles (performers, streaming gamers, event organizers) still add cultural value and can also earn points, but their rate might differ from, say, doctors or essential infrastructure workers.

Are We Missing Something?
While weighting impact is appealing, it also raises questions: Who decides which roles deserve a higher multiplier of points? How do we avoid undervaluing cultural or creative fields that indirectly enrich society? There’s no one-size-fits-all formula, so a combination of public input, expert committees, and transparent governance could help maintain balance.

One core principle remains non-negotiable: Fundamental Human Rights—food, water, shelter, healthcare, education, basic mobility, and communication—go to everyone, regardless of their merit points. The system might offer additional perks (like access to “luxury” food options, upgraded housing choices, or advanced education pathways) to those with higher merit, but no one should be stripped of essentials.

Criminals & Severe Offenders
A possible exception is for individuals who’ve committed serious crimes against humanity. They shouldn’t be denied basic nutrition or essential healthcare, but their freedom of movement, communication privileges, or housing conditions might be restricted. Even then, the aim is to protect society while maintaining a standard of human dignity for the offender.

A big challenge is preventing people from gaming the system—like having more children merely to earn extra perks. Similarly, some roles could be “stacked” in a way that yields disproportionate rewards if not carefully designed. A few guiding rules:

1. Some Benefits Are Non-Stackable

   • Example: Raising children is recognized as an important, unsalaried form of employment. However, the merit-based perks for parenting might cap out at a certain level. Whether you raise one child or three, you’d still qualify for similar basic parenting perks, although each child would, of course, receive the fundamental resources they need.

2. Gradual Scaling

   • In other fields—teaching, healthcare, engineering—points could scale with the actual hours or projects completed, but with diminishing returns to prevent exploitation or inflation of tasks.

3. Transparent Oversight & Peer Review

   • Local committees or digital audits can verify contributions, ensuring that no one claims false hours or inflated achievements.

A frequently asked question: How much employment is “enough?”

• 24 Hours in a Day:
  • Around 10 hours for sleep, self-care, personal errands.
  • Remaining 14 hours could be split into:
    1. 7 Hours for personal freedom (hobbies, rest, family time).
    2. 7 Hours for “employment,” as recognized by the merit system.
• 35 Hours/Week: If we assume a 5-day cycle for these 7-hour “shifts,” that’s a baseline total of about 35 hours per week of recognized employment.

This is, of course, flexible—some people may manage more, others less, depending on personal circumstances, health, or caregiving responsibilities. The point is to highlight that a balanced approach is possible, ensuring people have time for rest, family, and other aspects of life while still contributing meaningfully to society.

Room for Exceptions

• Disabilities or Health Issues: People who can’t manage 35 hours a week might have alternative pathways to earn merit points or have community support that ensures their fundamental rights remain intact.
• High-Intensity Professions: Some roles, like emergency responders or specialized researchers, might require different scheduling blocks.
• Personal Choice: Individuals who want to put in more hours can do so, potentially earning extra perks—yet the system should guard against burnout and exploitation.

Reimagining employment around merit points and broad social contribution requires both cultural acceptance and strong policy frameworks. For example:

• Public Awareness

  • Campaigns to highlight the importance of unsalaried or less conventional roles (caregiving, environmental stewardship).
  • Recognition events or “merit ceremonies” acknowledging extraordinary contributions.

• Legislative Support

  • Updating labor laws to protect individuals in non-traditional employment.
  • Ensuring that pension/retirement systems can account for merit points or volunteer-based roles.

• Infrastructure Investments

  • More public childcare centers, communal kitchens, or remote-work facilities to enable diverse forms of employment.
  • Streamlined digital platforms for registering hours, tasks, or projects, so people can seamlessly earn and track merit points.

This expanded view of “employment” is the backbone of a more equitable society. Next, we’ll dive deeper into how merit points function: the algorithms, peer reviews, or committees that validate hours and impact, the range of perks available, and the checks and balances to prevent misuse. By matching people to roles they excel at—and ensuring everyone has a baseline of rights—we can finally escape the wage-centric rat race that undercuts individual passions and societal needs alike.

1. Misaligned Employment leads to underutilized talent, where people can’t pursue their true passions because certain roles pay too little.
2. Weighted Merit Points let us value high-impact roles (like teaching, healthcare, environmental protection) more heavily without neglecting cultural or entertainment fields.
3. Fundamental Rights Remain Universal, ensuring no one starves or goes homeless, while higher merit unlocks additional perks.
4. Balancing & Non-Stackable Perks prevent gaming the system (e.g., having more children just to gain extra benefits).
5. 35 Hours/Week is a flexible baseline for an “average” able-minded, able-bodied adult, acknowledging variations for personal or situational reasons.
6. Cultural & Policy Reforms are essential to support this broader concept of employment, requiring public acceptance and legal frameworks to protect unsalaried contributors.

By liberating employment from the profit-only paradigm, we create a world where individuals can truly thrive in roles that align with their skills, passions, and the greater social good. Next, let’s explore how we can track and reward those contributions fairly and transparently through merit points.