Working: What We Do All Day (2023) User Reviews

Equality of opportunity

[DutchPancake · 8/10 · 18 May 2023]

This documentary shows insight in the lives of people from all walks of life. It makes you appreciate what you have and/or motivates you to go where you want to go.

Great discussions about work then, now, and in the future. The documentary does not provide all the answers, but gives all of us a lot to think about.

Barack and Michelle Obama have found a great meaning to their lives, and sure are not done yet even after leaving the White House. The fears shared by Obama are fears many of us have.

Without going into too much details I highly recommend watching this docu serie. They try to keep it light while touching heavy subjects. I think they did a great job.

A great watch on today's community

[mdsazid-21979 · 8/10 · 23 May 2023]

Loved the series, all of its episodes. Obama, who held one of the highest offices in the world and touched so many lives, narrates it perfectly in his deep voice.

To see what people do, go through and think about work at different levels from the so-called "low-paying" jobs to being the bosses, is enlightening. You don't seem to appreciate enough at times what people at the bottom go through physically and emotionally doing what they do and earn low pay. It gives you a great perspective and lots of knowledge definitely with insight on different jobs.

The 4 episode series covers jobs across different levels in services, hospitality and home care industry. No matter what you do now, you would be able to connect with each of the individuals and if not, you would definitely get cognisant of what different people at different positions do whether below or above yours, or in your community.

It doesn't just cover their roles, and responsibilities but shows what the job means for the individuals at each of this level. When you are at the bottom, the job is typically just a means for you to survive. It may not be what you wanted to do or like doing, but you do it to pay your bills and provide for your family. Sometimes you may have to do 2 or 3 of these jobs to meet your expenses.

As you go up, you earn more and can satisfy most of your needs and then it starts becoming about your job satisfaction, aspirations and recognitions. You don't have to worry about your bills now, and you start thinking, are you making an impact or are you being recognized enough? And when you are the ultimate boss in the chain, you have to carry the aspirations of people that work for you, and of the community at large.

The series also highlights the increasing gap between the earnings of the top jobs and the low-paying service jobs. While the pay at the top and that of the "knowledge workers" has been increasing and the bosses' salary can run into millions of dollars, the pay at the bottom hasn't increased much. The price of real estate, education, and healthcare has increased tremendously and is unsustainable for a large fraction of the population.

While AI and automation can claim to make many redundant or low-end jobs obsolete, we will still need people doing some of these services. It is important to realise everyone's effort and aspirations and somehow bridge the gap of the opportunity they lack to make the society inclusive and a better place.

Overall a good documentary

[bbypookins · 8/10 · 4 January 2024]

I found this mini-series interesting and informative. I'm always impressed with Pres. Obama's ability to relate to anyone with whom he speaks and I really enjoyed watching him interact with the different workers. My only negative is the repetitive display of management leading staff meetings with a Christian prayer. This practice should be discouraged, not encouraged or highlighted. It is completely inappropriate and unacceptable for a leader in the workplace to subject their subordinates to their own religion. It goes against the principles of our country and the intention of the United States' Constitution. I'm grateful to have never experienced similar circumstances in my career.

Timely and Interesting

[keikoyoshikawa · 7/10 · 18 May 2023]

This is an interesting look at some categories of jobs or really social classes in the US., flawed by its lack of breath and depth about any of them, and too much focus on a narrow range of businesses or industry.

Service Jobs: We follow a couple of the people who do the essential jobs that are relatively low-paying. What's good is that we get their backgrounds. What's bad is that there isn't anything about gig-workers.

The Middle: We follow a few more people who do white-collar jobs. What's good is that we get a look at their motivations. What's bad is that the examples are very limited; where are the blue-collar workers?

Dream Jobs: Now we get into a territory that most people are not a part of. These are the people in the 9%, a group which Obama says actually hold more wealth than either the 1% or the 90%. Is this true?

The Boss: This could have been easily the least interesting part of the entire documentary. The elites of society, they literally benefit off the labor of others. I'm glad that one down-to-earth CEO was showcased, however.

If there's any important take-away from this all too short documentary, it is that UBI (universal basic income) is a good idea and necessary if the US is to have a more equitable society and slow the widening wealth gap - one of the biggest threat to democracy.

Rich people think different, president Obama failed the expectation

[uaeleeguoqing · 6/10 · 24 May 2023]

This documentary failed the expectation.

It just picked several typical daily stories from three different classes: the poor people, the middle class people, and the rich people.

For rich people, it is never the luxurious or delicate lifestyle, neither that healthy morning vegetable drink for that Indian rich boss in the episode 4, it's their minds that make such differences.

Why poor people are keeping poor from generation to generation, and why rich people are getting rich and rich? That's what a high quality documentary should be think and dig. Not some life examples of people this show is presenting .

President Obama should think deeper, and think wider, like he said: his is worried about the next generation.

Eye-opening and very real

[taywarren29 · 10/10 · 21 May 2023]

This docu series is filmed to make you feel like you are actually present with the people in it. You don't just see the people's workspace, but also their home life and other struggles they may face. I loved that they focused on just a handful of companies and actually talked about the different wealth classes within those companies.

It's divided into 4 different wealth classes, starting from the lowest income to the highest.

Depending on where you personally are within these 4 classes, it's going to make you feel a certain way. To me, it felt very eye opening and a little more aware of what's going on in the world and how people spend their days.

I think everyone should watch this! Definitely worth it.

Critical Perspective at an Important Time

[kanthimathi-30692 · 9/10 · 27 May 2023]

In this 4 part series, President Obama explores what is the meaning of work in our society for people at different levels of the socio-economic spectrum. We also get a good context of how work has evolved over the past 100 years.

In an era where rapid technological changes and automation is changing the very nature of work, this show is an important piece of work that shows a mirror to how it is for folks today and asks some very important questions. It doesn't answer all of them - but I think the answers should be arrived at collectively, with everybody getting a seat at the table rather than soothsaying by experts, even if it is The President. I believe that is the point of the show.

Craft wise, it is a very watchable show, full of heart and very real. It immerses you into the lives of the people we are meeting, through excellent staging, superb editing and great music.

Very eye opening and a sincere look at people working low wage service jobs.

[kcitraro · 10/10 · 27 May 2023]

I'm loving this. I'm not finished, but thought I'd write a review because there aren't many here. Obama looks at a 22 yr senior housekeeper in a hotel. A nursing assistant for homecare in Mississippi. I am familiar with this job. I was pleased to see it portrayed realistically. Next is a Uber eats deliverer. Which was just hideous. The pay sucks. 1/2 of all Americans work in service industry like this. Let that sink in.. 1/2 of Americans! Low pay, no benefits and grueling work. Obama discusses a 1980 janitor full time working at Kodak who ended up chief tech officer. Compare now to 2020 a janitor at tech place doesn't work for the company and there's no longer a chance to advance in the work place. Most of them work multiple jobs and can't find time or money to advance.

All of these people find ways to cut their cost to live. Eating at work or cutting electric use. There's no safety net if the have a financial setback.

FDR made the new deal. SSI minimum wage and 40 hour work week . But It excluded service and farm workers. That legacy remains to this day. This makes me really want to hug some of these workers and I'm glad I tip well! They deserve it! Everyone should watch this.