Observations on Work, Employment & Education
„Is it worth the pay?“ – A German short film series about professions & money.
From today’s perspective, the idea of committing to profession and working in this profession — perhaps even in one and the same company — for the rest of one’s working life may no longer be quite so realistic. Nevertheless, choosing a career is still an important developmental task for adolescents and young adults who are considering their professional future (Steinmann & Maier, 2018). If, in this context, professional work is seen as a central ‘axis of lifestyle’ (Beck, 1986), which consumes a significant part of a person’s life, then it becomes all the more important that the profession should ideally create meaning, open up material opportunities and enable social identification (Aßländer & Wagner, 2017).
The world of professions is extremely diverse and it can be challenging to find the profession that pays off in the long-term and choose the appropriate educational pathway. For this reason, publicly funded careers information advice has long been established as a fundamental tool. Notably, career information and its dissemination has changed over the years with the development of the media: From the film projector, the VHS to the Instagram reel; from career booklets to online portals, such as the career information system of the AMS in Austria (AMS, 2024) or the BERUFENET information portal of the Federal Employment Agency in Germany (Bundesagentur für Arbeit, 2024). In German-speaking countries in particular, careers guidance films have always been produced by public broadcasters to fulfil their mission of providing educational content. These include the short film series ‘Lohnt sich das?’ (Is it worth the pay?) by BR.
The series was launched in 2020 and still features a large number of videos that can be viewed via the ARD media library and the respective YouTube channel. In each short film, a profession is presented in 10 to 15 minutes by a member of said profession. Viewers are given the opportunity to accompany them through a working day and gain an insight into typical work tasks and processes as well as challenges and success stories. Recurring elements in the episodes are the definition of the respective person’s professional pathway, a rough comparison of their expenses and monthly income, as well as a final answer to the question ‘Is it worth it?’. In this way, the short films aim to consciously address the topic of wages, what they are spent on and whether they are enough to live on (BR, 2020). This clearly sets the series apart from similar earlier series, in which monetary and social aspects were either deliberately excluded or simply neglected.
The title may suggest that financial aspects take centre stage, but this is not necessarily the case. Instead, the short films portray both academic professions and apprenticeships in an entertaining and succinct way without oversimplifying them – real people with real jobs. As viewers, we observe them not only at work, but also in their everyday lives. In one film, for example, we get to know Nando, a digital social worker, in his home (and home office), who works on platforms such as Reddit, Instagram and Twitch in order to advise and engage with young people as closely as possible. Nando personally relates to particularly challenging situations, for example when it comes to coping with loss. In this way, he tells a touching story about the loss of a beloved family member, which he recently had to go through himself. In another film, we meet receptionist Ani, who gives us the opportunity of accompanying her as she does her voluntary work after a day’s work in a hotel. She teaches children Armenian so that they don’t forget their mother tongue. In the lesson shown, the children learn the names of fingers and colours through play. For Ani, this is not about the money, but about the children’s learning progress and enjoyment.
Due to their succinct nature, the films don’t claim to provide comprehensive information about job profiles. For me, their added value lies in the fact that they candidly provide an introduction to the fascinating world of professions. They do this by addressing a seemingly simple question that should not only be of interest to people in their career choice: What does a postwoman, a flight attendant, a glazier, a kitchen manager, a primary school teacher, a librarian, a bakery shop assistant, an app designer etc. actually do and how much do they get for it? The rough insight into income and expenditure in each episode satisfies the viewers’ curiosity to a certain extent, but the figures can only be generalised to a limited extent and depend heavily on the individual circumstances of each person. Even more interesting is to see how different one and the same simple question, ‘Is it worth it?’, can be answered.
Dr Hoang L. Nguyen is a lecturer in social work and adult education at SRH Fernhochschule. He teaches and researches topics in vocational training, adult education/further education and social work.
Referenzen:
AMS (2024). Berufsinformationssystem. https://bis.ams.or.at/bis/index.php. (accessed 18.12.2024.)
Aßländer, M. S. & Wagner, B. (2017). Einführung: Arbeit und Philosophie. In M. S. Aßländer & B. Wagner (Hrsg.), Philosophie der Arbeit. Texte von der Antike bis zur Gegenwart (S. 11–26). Berlin: Suhrkamp Verlag.
Beck, U. (1986). Risikogesellschaft. Auf dem Weg in eine andere Moderne. Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp Verlag.
BR (2020). Auszeichnung für Reportage-Format. BR freut sich über Bremer Fernsehpreis 2020 für “Lohnt sich das?”. https://www.br.de/presse/inhalt/pressemitteilungen/bremer-fernsehpreis-lohnt-sich-das-100.html. (accessed 18.12.2024.)
Bundesagentur für Arbeit (2024). BERUFENET. https://web.arbeitsagentur.de/berufenet/. (accessed 18.12.2024.)
Steinmann, B. & Maier, G. W. (2018). Berufswahl. In A. Lohaus (Hrsg.), Entwicklungspsychologie des Jugendalters (S. 223–250). Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer.
What does a digital street worker earn? (Lohnt sich das? BR 2024), German
What does a receptionist earn? (Lohnt sich das? BR 2022), German
What does a paramedic earn? (Lohnt sich das? BR 2020), German
„Lohnt sich das?“
© ARD
„Is it worth the pay?“ – A German short film series about professions & money.
From today’s perspective, the idea of committing to profession and working in this profession — perhaps even in one and the same company — for the rest of one’s working life may no longer be quite so realistic. Nevertheless, choosing a career is still an important developmental task for adolescents and young adults who are considering their professional future (Steinmann & Maier, 2018). If, in this context, professional work is seen as a central ‘axis of lifestyle’ (Beck, 1986), which consumes a significant part of a person’s life, then it becomes all the more important that the profession should ideally create meaning, open up material opportunities and enable social identification (Aßländer & Wagner, 2017).
The world of professions is extremely diverse and it can be challenging to find the profession that pays off in the long-term and choose the appropriate educational pathway. For this reason, publicly funded careers information advice has long been established as a fundamental tool. Notably, career information and its dissemination has changed over the years with the development of the media: From the film projector, the VHS to the Instagram reel; from career booklets to online portals, such as the career information system of the AMS in Austria (AMS, 2024) or the BERUFENET information portal of the Federal Employment Agency in Germany (Bundesagentur für Arbeit, 2024). In German-speaking countries in particular, careers guidance films have always been produced by public broadcasters to fulfil their mission of providing educational content. These include the short film series ‘Lohnt sich das?’ (Is it worth the pay?) by BR.
The series was launched in 2020 and still features a large number of videos that can be viewed via the ARD media library and the respective YouTube channel. In each short film, a profession is presented in 10 to 15 minutes by a member of said profession. Viewers are given the opportunity to accompany them through a working day and gain an insight into typical work tasks and processes as well as challenges and success stories. Recurring elements in the episodes are the definition of the respective person’s professional pathway, a rough comparison of their expenses and monthly income, as well as a final answer to the question ‘Is it worth it?’. In this way, the short films aim to consciously address the topic of wages, what they are spent on and whether they are enough to live on (BR, 2020). This clearly sets the series apart from similar earlier series, in which monetary and social aspects were either deliberately excluded or simply neglected.
The title may suggest that financial aspects take centre stage, but this is not necessarily the case. Instead, the short films portray both academic professions and apprenticeships in an entertaining and succinct way without oversimplifying them – real people with real jobs. As viewers, we observe them not only at work, but also in their everyday lives. In one film, for example, we get to know Nando, a digital social worker, in his home (and home office), who works on platforms such as Reddit, Instagram and Twitch in order to advise and engage with young people as closely as possible. Nando personally relates to particularly challenging situations, for example when it comes to coping with loss. In this way, he tells a touching story about the loss of a beloved family member, which he recently had to go through himself. In another film, we meet receptionist Ani, who gives us the opportunity of accompanying her as she does her voluntary work after a day’s work in a hotel. She teaches children Armenian so that they don’t forget their mother tongue. In the lesson shown, the children learn the names of fingers and colours through play. For Ani, this is not about the money, but about the children’s learning progress and enjoyment.
Due to their succinct nature, the films don’t claim to provide comprehensive information about job profiles. For me, their added value lies in the fact that they candidly provide an introduction to the fascinating world of professions. They do this by addressing a seemingly simple question that should not only be of interest to people in their career choice: What does a postwoman, a flight attendant, a glazier, a kitchen manager, a primary school teacher, a librarian, a bakery shop assistant, an app designer etc. actually do and how much do they get for it? The rough insight into income and expenditure in each episode satisfies the viewers’ curiosity to a certain extent, but the figures can only be generalised to a limited extent and depend heavily on the individual circumstances of each person. Even more interesting is to see how different one and the same simple question, ‘Is it worth it?’, can be answered.
Dr Hoang L. Nguyen is a lecturer in social work and adult education at SRH Fernhochschule. He teaches and researches topics in vocational training, adult education/further education and social work.
Referenzen:
AMS (2024). Berufsinformationssystem. https://bis.ams.or.at/bis/index.php. (accessed 18.12.2024.)
Aßländer, M. S. & Wagner, B. (2017). Einführung: Arbeit und Philosophie. In M. S. Aßländer & B. Wagner (Hrsg.), Philosophie der Arbeit. Texte von der Antike bis zur Gegenwart (S. 11–26). Berlin: Suhrkamp Verlag.
Beck, U. (1986). Risikogesellschaft. Auf dem Weg in eine andere Moderne. Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp Verlag.
BR (2020). Auszeichnung für Reportage-Format. BR freut sich über Bremer Fernsehpreis 2020 für “Lohnt sich das?”. https://www.br.de/presse/inhalt/pressemitteilungen/bremer-fernsehpreis-lohnt-sich-das-100.html. (accessed 18.12.2024.)
Bundesagentur für Arbeit (2024). BERUFENET. https://web.arbeitsagentur.de/berufenet/. (accessed 18.12.2024.)
Steinmann, B. & Maier, G. W. (2018). Berufswahl. In A. Lohaus (Hrsg.), Entwicklungspsychologie des Jugendalters (S. 223–250). Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer.
What does a digital street worker earn? (Lohnt sich das? BR 2024), German
What does a receptionist earn? (Lohnt sich das? BR 2022), German
What does a paramedic earn? (Lohnt sich das? BR 2020), German
„Lohnt sich das?“
© ARD
Trainspotters’ job interviews
Job interviews in feature films are rare. Nevertheless, film history has some special treats in store. From the point of view of public employment services, the interview scene from Trainspotting (1996) by Danny Boyle cannot be surpassed.
What‘s Work?
What’s labour? What’s employment? And how have they changed over the centuries? Leading scholars from Europe, the US, China and Africa reflect on these and related questions in a six-part documentary by Gérard Mordillat and Bertrand Rothé, which makes for an outstanding podcast.
The limits of our imagination of the future: men doing housework!
It is difficult to conceive the future as something open to objective analysis. The future is inevitably intangible. There is, however, one exception: the future of the past. "Past’s futures" such as those manifested in commercials of the 1950s and 1960s reveal many interesting things, for instance the lack of imagination of social change.
The Future of Work: Science and Science Fiction
Futurology has long since established itself as a scientific discipline. Why research should not be aversed to borrow from science fiction films becomes evident in the British miniseries Years and Years (2019) by Russell T. Davies.
THE WALKING MAN
Work ennobles. Work makes life sweeter. Sayings like these apodictically inscribe the principle of work into people's consciousness as the right and good thing to do. When American TV show us an example of this ideal, it is to double-down on the proliferation of the message of ‘a hero of labour’ : James Roberston – the walking man.
Power Plant Employment
Movies and documentaries on reactor disasters were trending last year. 10 years since Fukushima and 35 years since Chernobyl rolled the carpet out. For a true insight into the working world of nuclear power plants, however, I do recommend going further back, to Volker Sattel's "Unter Kontrolle" (2011).
About this blog
By selecting a film or an image, this blog literally illustrates the vast sphere of work, employment & education in an open collection of academic, artistic and also anecdotal findings.
About us
Konrad Wakolbinger makes documentary films about work and life. Jörg Markowitsch does research on education and work. They are both based in Vienna. Information on guest authors can be found in their corresponding articles.
More about
Interested in more? Find recommendations on relevant festivals, film collections and literature here.
About this blog
With picking a film or an image, this blog literally illustrates the vast sphere of work, employment & education in an open collection of academic, artistic and also anecdotal findings.
About us
Konrad Wakolbinger makes documentary films about work and life. Jörg Markowitsch does research on education and work. We both work in Vienna. Information on guest authors can be found in their respective articles.
More about
Interested in more? Find recommendations on relevant festivals, film collections and literature here.