Bonum Certa Men Certa

GAFAM Jobs No Longer Lucrative

posted by Roy Schestowitz on Feb 23, 2026

Head of the Laocoin of Rome

2 weeks ago: In Case You've Missed It (ICYMI), Google's Debt More Than Doubled in a Year

On at least 3 occasions in the past Google tried to hire me. It just found me on the Net and then contacted me. Back then (around 20 years ago) Google boasted about having chefs who feed staff and all sorts of exceptional benefits such letting workers do "personal projects" ('for fun') once a week, even for as much as a whole day (while salaried by Google).

Those days are long gone. Nowadays Google compels workers to sign rights-waiving agreements that essentially say anything the worker produces is Google's (even outside Google, even outside working hours, sometimes under the guise of "trade secrets" or so-called 'IP').

By crushing the individual Google also crushes individualism, leading to crises of identity.

Stressed workers have long expressed concerns and anguish. The same is true in other GAFAM companies. The atmosphere is not the same anymore because stress is prevalent and working hours (or expected cumulative hours of work) increase without any increase in pay. Many people who work there are basically slaves; they're slaves to the money they assume they cannot get anywhere else (this assumption might be correct, but health is wealth too).

Whatever the perception of GAFAM jobs used to be, what the media is presently floating seems outdated and partly false. Until someone young unexpectedly dies on the job; then the tune changes. █

Family of Microsoft Employee Who Died on the Job Warns Tech Companies Not to Overwork Employees


Image source: Head of the Laocoin of Rome


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