The Refusal of Work Quotes

“When significant proportions of our time are spent working, recuperating from work, compensating for work, or doing the many things necessary in order to find, prepare for, and hold on to work, it becomes increasingly difficult to say how much of our time is truly our own. [ch.three]”
― David Frayne, The Refusal of Work: The Theory and Practice of Resistance to Work

“One of the most pressing questions faced by capitalist societies now, at the pinnacle of their productive capacities, is the question of what should be done with the time being saved by these gains in productivity. What meaning and content will we, as a society, choose to give this new-found free-time?
Will we use it to enhance our lives outside work, nourish our relationships and pursue our own self-development, or will economic rationality dictate that we spend just as much time and energy on work as we did before? [ch.one]”
― David Frayne, The Refusal of Work: The Theory and Practice of Resistance to Work

“The development of productive technologies offered western society a choice: to have more leisure time, or to increase the production and consumption of consumer goods. Capitalism took us down the latter path, and the Utopian dream of ease and leisure for all was buried under a mountain of commodities. [ch.three]”
― David Frayne, The Refusal of Work: The Theory and Practice of Resistance to Work

“To any who would suggest that there is no alternative to the work-centred society, I submit that it is a profoundly sad society that cannot envisage a future where a sense of social solidarity and purpose are achieved through anything other than commodity relations. [ch.eight]”
― David Frayne, The Refusal of Work: The Theory and Practice of Resistance to Work

“It is crucial we also think beyond workers' rights to confront a broader and more fundamental set of questions: What is so great about work that sees society constantly trying to create more of it? Why, at the pinnacle of productive development, is there still thought to be need for everybody to work for most of the time? What is work for, and what else could we be doing in the future, were we no longer cornered into spending most of our time working? [ch.one]”
― David Frayne, The Refusal of Work: The Theory and Practice of Resistance to Work

“It is indeed curious that engagement in paid work should represent such a powerful symbol of maturity and independence, given the realities of employment as a situation of profound dependency. I speak not only of the dependency inherent in the wage relation, but also of the dependency on commercial products and services, which become the only way to meet certain needs after work has drained our time and energy. [ch.six]”
― David Frayne, The Refusal of Work: The Theory and Practice of Resistance to Work

“Co-opted by management, work–life
balance represents yet another example of capitalism’s remarkable
ability to take a potentially radical idea, soften it up, and serve it back
to us in the interests of commercial gain. The failing of the work–life
balance rhetoric is that it does not ask fundamental questions about
the purpose of work, nor does it question work’s ability to fulfil its
societal functions; it only gives us permission to ask quietly that we
be allowed to work a bit less (usually to pursue other responsibilities
such as taking care of our families). It tries to accommodate our dis-
affection with the current system within that system, hindering our
ability to really compare alternatives in an open way. It also has little
to offer those people who are forced to work long hours because
their economic circumstances compel them to do so.”
― David Frayne, The Refusal of Work: The Theory and Practice of Resistance to Work

“After all, the vocabulary of resistance to work has so often been linked to the idea of prostitution: 'selling yourslef', 'selling your soul', surrendering to 'the Man' and so on. When forced to adopt the values of the company or customer, many workers fear the creeping feeling of inauthenticity or indignity that often follows.”
― David Frayne, The Refusal of Work: The Theory and Practice of Resistance to Work

“Such incidents act as crude reminders that the workers are, when it comes down to it, not part of a company family, but disposable instruments for the generation of private profit (Gorz, 1989: 64).”
― David Frayne, The Refusal of Work: The Theory and Practice of Resistance to Work