A long time ago, there was a small town.
There are many shoe stores in the town. These shoe stores open every morning 10, take a lunch break from noon 12 to 2 pm, and continue to operate from 2 pm to 6 pm. It is open for 5 days every Monday to Friday and closed on weekends.
In the hottest summer, the shoe store owner will close the store and go to the seaside in the south for a holiday; In the coldest winter, the shoe store owner will also close the store and go skiing in the mountains in the north.
Over the years, the permanent population in the town has not changed, the quality of shoes has been excellent and the supply is stable. Therefore, the relationship between supply and demand of shoes in small towns has been in a nearly perfect balance.
Then one day, the family moved from a big city to a small town and opened a shoe store.
Although the town is small, it has a certain scale, and the balance between supply and demand of shoes will not be broken by adding a shoe store.
However, people in that big city are famous for their diligence and endurance. Sure enough, this family from a big city also has these characteristics.
Their shoe store opens at 7 o'clock every morning, does not take a lunch break at noon, and closes at 1 1 in the evening; They are also open on weekends and never go on holiday in summer and winter.
Gradually, their "diligence" paid off, and the business of their shoe store was obviously better than that of other shoe stores in the town.
In the past, people in small towns could not buy shoes after dinner, but now, they can buy shoes in people's shoe stores in big cities almost at any time, so there is no need to patronize other shoe stores.
However, the town owners are not convinced. They follow the schedule of people in big cities, working 7 days a week and 0/6 hours a day.
Their "diligence" has also been "rewarded": their business income has returned to its previous state. So, what changes have taken place in town life at this time?
Because the population of the town has not increased and the demand for shoes remains the same as before, the final operating income of each shoe store has not changed and will not increase.
But the business hours have changed from 6 hours a day, 5 days a week, to one day 16 hours, 7 days a week. In other words, their working hours have become longer, but their income has not increased.
This is the legendary involution. At the same time, this is also the legendary prisoner's dilemma.
But no industry exists in isolation.
Shoe store owners work longer hours and have less time for entertainment. They visit restaurants and cafes less, so the catering industry in the town has become deserted.
Although the business hours of shoe stores have been extended and the electricity consumption has increased, restaurants and cafes have entered the energy-saving mode during some periods of cold business, so the business of power plants has not improved.
On the whole, the economy of this town has deteriorated rather than improved.
So we can see that involution is not only harmful, but also harmful to everyone who seems innocent.
Tired shoe store owners in small towns quickly realized this problem, so they set up a shoe industry association and jointly formulated mandatory industry rules and labor laws with the town government: the working hours should not exceed 8 hours a day, the business hours should not exceed 5 days a week, and holidays must be closed. ...
The shoe industry association has the right to request the closure of shoe stores that do not meet the requirements. For those who refuse to mend their ways, the footwear association will jointly expel them from the town with the town government. ...
As soon as the regulations came out, people in big cities protested immediately. They think this is a disrespect for the industrious rich and for consumers. This is an interference in their freedom, unfair treatment and geographical discrimination. ...
Shoe Industry Association immediately replied: Your so-called efforts did not really get rich, but did harm to society.
Shoe stores are not emergency centers, so it often makes no difference whether consumers buy shoes one day earlier or one day later. You only care about your own schedule and ignore others. This is not freedom, but selfishness. This is really unfair. ...
Everyone is equal before the labor law, and there is no discrimination against anyone. It is natural to take coercive measures against offenders. ...
Finally, I want to say that involution will not create value, and it may also harm everyone.
If workers don't wake up and fight, and managers don't make effective measures to prevent involution, but let involution happen, each of us is a victim and everyone's happiness will be reduced.