Video Games Are Destroying the People Who Make Them

[Josquius]

I am surprised they are only making in the 80k range. For skills like theirs I'd have thought they'd be over 100k at least. Unless there's a bunch of juniors with a high drop out weight dragging down the average?

I bet you are one of those, though, who complains when a game on Steam costs more than $20.

Economies of scale

[Admiral Yi]

Sounds like a case of chronic poor work flow scheduling.

[garbon]

As a person who previously worked 100 hour weeks for months and then ended up on medical leave...

[Tonitrus]

This is why things like OSHA exist.  Beyond a certain point, employees just shouldn't be allowed to trade health for employment, regardless of how willing they are to succumb to the prevailing culture at the workplace.

Just like how we cannot trust discount-seeking consumers to prevent airlines from cramming them into airplanes as if they were industrial poultry.

[garbon]

This is why things like OSHA exist.  Beyond a certain point, employees just shouldn't be allowed to trade health for employment, regardless of how willing they are to succumb to the prevailing culture at the workplace.

Just like how we cannot trust discount-seeking consumers to prevent airlines from cramming them into airplanes as if they were industrial poultry.

I don't see how that's 'just like' that at all.

[The Brain]

Just like and share. OK?

[grumbler]

Sounds like a case of chronic poor work flow scheduling.

Agree that that's what it sounds like, but there's no evidence from the story that really tells us how chronic this is.  Mostly, this is just a mass of anecdotes.  Even where it gives us data ("65 percent of developers said they'd had to crunch, with 52 percent adding that they'd done it more than twice in the previous two years") there is no indication of how long these crunch times lasted nor what the average work week was in the industry.

If this is just management fuckups, then presumably some companies have better managers than others, and so have no crunch times.  Unfortunately, neither the author of this op-ed piece, nor the author of a book that supposedly addresses the issue, apparently bothered to find those companies and find out their secret.

[grumbler]

Just like how we cannot trust discount-seeking consumers to prevent airlines from cramming them into airplanes as if they were industrial poultry.

I don't see how that's 'just like' that at all.

That's okay.  Some people can "get" analogies, and some can't. 

Tonto is noting that people make choices that involve trading less comfort for more money all the time.

[garbon]

Just like how we cannot trust discount-seeking consumers to prevent airlines from cramming them into airplanes as if they were industrial poultry.

I don't see how that's 'just like' that at all.

That's okay.  Some people can "get" analogies, and some can't. 

Tonto is noting that people make choices that involve trading less comfort for more money all the time.

Less comfort on a plane isn't really the same as behavior (overworking) that lead to health issues.

[Razgovory]

On Grumbler's Latifunium it was always crunch-time.

[garbon]

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2017/oct/26/thriving-work-report-uk-mental-health-problems-forcing-thousands-out

Mental health problems are forcing thousands in UK out of work – report

Thriving at Work report commissioned by government urges employers to commit to six core standards around mental health

About 300,000 people with a long-term mental health problem lose their jobs each year, a review commissioned by Theresa May has found.

The Thriving at Work report, published on Thursday, puts the annual cost to the UK economy of poor mental health at up to £99bn, of which about £42bn is borne by employers.

The authors – the Mind chief executive, Paul Farmer, and the mental health campaigner and a former HBOS chair, Dennis Stevenson – said they were shocked to find the number of people forced to stop work as a result of mental health problems was 50% higher than for those with physical health conditions.

Farmer said the evidence suggested it is still a taboo subject in many workplaces. "The picture is that there are very significant numbers of people in work with mental health problems but there are significant numbers who are not," he said.

"We think that the reasons for that are a combination of a lack of support, lack of understanding within some workplaces and a lack of speedy access to mental health services. Sometimes in organisations people feel themselves excluded as a result of their mental health issues and sometimes people don't necessarily spot that somebody is struggling."

Farmer and Stevenson said that the challenge was bigger than they had envisaged when instructed by the prime minister, but that with action dramatic changes could be achieved over the next 10 years. They said they hoped that the number of people with long-term mental health problems who lose their jobs could be reduced to the same level as those with physical conditions.

They found that about 15% of people at work have symptoms of an existing mental health condition, which they said illustrates the fact that given the right support they can thrive in employment.

Farmer described the economic case as overwhelming and the authors link current failures to the UK's relatively poor productivity. An analysis by Deloitte examining existing workplace interventions identified potential to generate a return to business of between £1.50 and £9 for every £1 invested.

Among examples of good practice highlighted by the report are the mental health first aid courses at Thames Water and, at Aviva, the promotion of e-learning modules to help identify and self-identify when people need support.

Farmer and Stevenson said they want all employers to commit to six core standards around mental health, including having a plan in place, increasing awareness among employees, stipulating line management responsibilities and routinely monitoring staff's mental health and wellbeing. "What we feel is really important is that organisations take responsibility for the mental health of their staff," said Farmer.

"As the stigma around mental health begins to shift, I think the area of mental health in the workplace is becoming much more visible. Employers are recognising that this is an issue, but they don't know what to do. That's why we've recommended these core standards."

Highlighting further benefits for companies, he said that some young people were now asking employers about their mental health policies in the same way they might have asked about their green credentials a decade ago.

"The most progressive organisations in this area are already being quite open in terms of their internal reporting and what they put on their website in terms of how they support their staff," he said.

Large employers are expected to go further and the report calls on the government and public sector to lead by example. It says the government should also ensure that the NHS provides high quality mental health services, quick and convenient to fit around employment, and consider enhancing protections for employees with mental health conditions in the Equality Act 2010.

The report makes 40 recommendations and Stevenson urged the government to accept them all. "We need the right leadership among employers in the public, private and voluntary sectors, and a mandate from policy-makers to deliver our ambitious but achievable plan," he said.

Stephen Martin, director general of the Institute of Directors, welcomed the review which he said shows "mental health is not just a moral issue, but a business one too. Business leaders must put themselves at the frontier of addressing these challenges."

...

[Grey Fox]

Sounds like a case of chronic poor work flow scheduling.

DING DING DING

Because work flow managers are either a) Game designers with delusional of grandeurs or b) constantly over ruled.

Crunch is bad, we should not do it.

[Grey Fox]

If this is just management fuckups, then presumably some companies have better managers than others, and so have no crunch times.  Unfortunately, neither the author of this op-ed piece, nor the author of a book that supposedly addresses the issue, apparently bothered to find those companies and find out their secret.

No, he did. In his book, he goes to CD Projekt Red, makers of the Witcher series, a company without crunch. The main reasons on why they do not crunch are 1) company culture, founders don't believe in it, 2) Polish law requires overtime to be paid.

[crazy canuck]

Yeah, it is remarkable how adaptable a company can be when it learns overtime pay is required

[grumbler]

Less comfort on a plane isn't really the same as behavior (overworking) that lead to health issues.

Overworking only rarely leads to health issues.  Riding on overcrowded airplanes only rarely leads to health issues.  The question is whether that choice should be made by individuals, or by government bureaucracies.