The outbreak of the novel coronavirus has shown us who the true essential workers are. Doctors and nurses are not the only ones on the proverbial list of critical jobs. The list also includes those jobs that do not require a college degree: food and agricultural workers, mass transit and airport employees, truckers, warehouse workers, police officers, firefighters, sanitation engineers, hospital staff, mortuary and funeral service workers and dozens of more frequently overlooked positions. Today, these people are being hailed as real-life superheroes, but this has not always been the case.
Typically, a lack of education corresponds to a low-paying position with poor social clout. Many of these essential workers have gone unappreciated for far too long by those with more academic accomplishments. Even if you personally do not undermine the importance of these people, our democracy does.
Michael Sandel, a professor of political philosophy at Harvard, asserts that the meritocracy we live in contributes to the sentiment that those with more academic accolades are more deserving of success, according to The New York Times. He claims if we believe we are responsible for our success, we feel less responsible to help others—and I couldn't agree more.
All too often we fail to realize the degree to which our current lives are dependent on luck and the accident of birth. It is only by chance that I was born into a middle-class family in suburban New York in the late 1990s. I could have been born into a poor family or a rich one in Georgia or Ghana. Where and when I was born has without a doubt determined the course of my life. Additionally, it is only by chance that society happens to value certain talents. Many philosophers think that one is not entitled to the benefits of their natural abilities because they did nothing to deserve them. For example, the wealthy accountant did nothing to deserve his innate mathematical genius, and it just so happens that modern American society has a financial system that imparts value unto this skill.
So, if I have convinced you that our meritocracy is unjust to those who lack good fortune, you might be wondering what you should do to help. Sandel states, “Beyond thanking them for their service, we should reconfigure our economy and society to accord such workers the compensation and recognition that reflects the true value of their contributions—not only in an emergency but in our everyday lives.” The real challenge here is coming up with a socioeconomic system that helps minimum wage workers and is one that can be agreed upon by our nation's leaders.
I hope you agree that change is necessary. Frankly, it is disappointing that it took a national emergency to open our privileged eyes and see how unjust our economic system is. On the bright side, the pandemic has given us time to think. Think about our ethical shortcomings like how those doing the highest risk jobs are compensated the least. When this is over, we must do more than think. We must act.
Lauren is a senior biology and philosophy major who encourages you to stay safe and be kind.