May Day

Do we work to make a living
or are we living to work?

On this day, May 1st, people around the world celebrate and/or protest work, working conditions and the working class.  I wonder if it is a coincidence that this day is also known as May Day, same as a distress call for help from a sinking ship.
After reading the book Why we work? by Barry Schwartz I ask myself the question: Do I work to make a living or do I live to work?

In the book, Schwartz asks that if the main goal of working is to make money, then should the best incentive to get us to work harder be to be paid more money?  He explores the question of "why so many believe that the goal for working should be to earn money, how we arrived to believe that paying workers more leads to better work, and why this has made our society confused, unhappy, and has established a dangerously misguided system."
Only an academic would say this...
He further asks, "why are so many people dissatisfied with their work, despite healthy compensation? And why do so many people find immense fulfillment and satisfaction through “menial” jobs?"
In the book, Professor Schwartz gives examples of how finding meaning in one's work is what motivates people to work harder.  He talks about the need for all people to feel valued in their work, not through compensation, but through knowing that their work has an impact.
Although I agree with Schwartz that finding meaning in work makes it less, well, demeaning, it is hard to find this meaning when your work becomes laborious and futile.  For example, I recently talked to a former student who had become depressed after working countless hours to submit three grant proposals that did not get funding.  
It is hard to find meaning in work that can be seen as laborious and futile.  
I told my former student that the very act of writing the grant proposals can have meaning for her if she uses those proposals to trace a better plan for her research.  But I do sympathize and know that many others question the their efforts in getting research funding, especially given that the success rate for NIH grants stands at around 19%.  "All you can do is keep trying", I find myself telling my former student.
Another issue that I have with the Schwartz's book is that salaries for most jobs have stagnated and the disparity between the salaries of bosses and the workers have widened.  Sure, compensation is not the only motivator for good work, but it sure helps to feel that you are being compensated fairly.  When you find out that you are being compensated at 20% less than your male colleagues, it is demoralizing to the core. To tell workers to try to find meaning and satisfaction in the work itself as a motivator for better work does not begin to touch the demoralizing effect of wage inequality.
Our system is screaming May Day.