The freelance and gig economy has seen their numbers swell as millions of Americans quit their jobs during the pandemic to take their financial future and job arrangements into their own hands, and have been seeing great results. But on Wednesday’s edition of The View, the ABC hosts touted a Beyoncé song about the Great Resignation and used it to warp the movement into one about socialism with demands for a $26-per-hour minimum wage hike.
“Beyoncé’s latest song ‘Break My Soul’ helps celebrates the 47 million Americans who say they left the workplace to find employment on their own terms,” co-host Whoopi Goldberg announced.
After playing a soundbite of the song, co-host Joy Behar said it reminded her of Johnny Paycheck’s 1977 classic “Take This Job and Shove It,” and teed up her push for the massive wage hike: “So, in 1977, that song was, and, you know, back in the day, the minimum wage was very low. Now it's, what? $7-something an hour?”
The banter about the hike briefly became a contest of who could throw out the largest number:
HOSTIN: It needs to be 15 bucks an hour.
BEHAR: If – Now, if they kept up with inflation, it should be $26 an hour.
HOSTIN: At least, yeah.
Behar didn’t seem to understand what the Great Resignation was and possibly thought people were just quitting the workforce altogether, because she warned: “People have had it, and they're quitting. But of course, if everybody quits, we don't have much of an economy.”
“So, we’re hoping people will find better jobs,” she added.
Ignorant of the fact that many small businesses in rural parts of the country don’t have the money to pay people $15 or $ 26 per hour, especially for unspecialized labor, and with the cost of running a business skyrocketing under President Biden, Hostin declared, “They need to pay people their worth … Just pay people their value.”
“At least the minimum wage, come on,” Behar huffed as if businesses were somehow able to get away with not doing that.
In response to this portion of the segment, freelance media strategist, writer, and freelance advocate Gabriella Hoffman schooled them on Twitter:
.@TheView The Great Resignation is about workers leaving 9-to-5 jobs and trading them for flexible work arrangements, including high-paying contract work, in the freelance/gig economy.
— Gabriella Hoffman (@Gabby_Hoffman) June 22, 2022
Workers make more than minimum wage when they're in control of their work output. https://t.co/VYREyTlizJ
Republican guest-host Lindsey Granger brought the conversation back to the song and appreciated what influenced it. And she pumped the breaks a bit on the message. “Quit your job, but, like, understand, I appreciate entrepreneurship, but don't jump off if you are not in a position to do so. You're not Beyoncé,” she quipped.
Goldberg chimed in with an eyebrow-raising policy solution of her own. “What you really need to be fighting for, is you need to be fighting for less taxes because before the tax laws changed, people had a little extra in their pocket,” she lamented. “We need to change these tax laws because they've full of boo.”
Goldberg’s declaration is confusing because, on its face, it seems like a Republican policy objective. But the last major tax policy overhaul came in 2017 when congressional Republicans lowered taxes across the board. Now, perhaps she’s talking about how the policy limited state tax right-offs. In that case, it meant people should fight to lower the taxes in their Democrat-controlled states.
This warping of The Great Resignation was made possible because of lucrative sponsorships from Vicks and Charmin. Their contact information is linked.
The transcript is below, click "expand" to read:
ABC’s The View
June 22, 2022
11:23:37 a.m. EasternWHOOPI GOLDBERG: Beyoncé’s latest song "Break my soul" helps celebrates the 47 million Americans who say they left the workplace to find employment on their own terms. Now, a movement that became known as the Great Resignation -- oh, here's a listen.
BEYONCE (via song): Now I just fell in love, and I just quit my job. I'm going to find new drive. Damn, they work me so damn hard.
JOY BEHAR: Okay.
GOLDBERG: Okay.
[Laughter]
The question is, is this song going to inspire more people to rethink their career paths?
BEHAR: You know, there was a song in 1977 called "Take this job and shove it."
GOLDBERG: Take this job and shove it.
SUNNY HOSTIN: Oh yeah. It was a country music song.
BEHAR: It was country music. We haven't really moved that far from that, have we?
GOLDBERG: No.
HOSTIN: No.
BEHAR: So, in 1977, that song was, and, you know, back in the day, the minimum wage was very low. Now it's, what? $7-something an hour?
HOSTIN: It’s still low.
SARA HAINES: Still very low.
HOSTIN: It needs to be 15 bucks an hour.
BEHAR: If – Now, if they kept up with inflation, it should be $26 an hour.
HOSTIN: At least, yeah.
BEHAR: So, people are frustrated with their jobs, you know? People have had it, and they're quitting. But of course, if everybody quits, we don't have much of an economy. So, we’re hoping people will find a better jobs.
HOSTIN: They need to pay people their worth.
BEHAR: Doesn't this force the employers to give people more money?
HOSTIN: Just pay people their value.
BEHAR: At least the minimum wage, come on.
LINDSEY GRANGER: On top of this, I think it's just a good '90s house vibe. It samples "Show me love," a really popular ‘90s song. Plus, Big Freedia, Down South music. So, shoutout to them.
GOLDBERG: Yes!
GRANGER: I love that!
GOLDBERG: Freedia!
GRANGER: Beyoncé has been telling us what to do for years. Like when she said, put your boyfriend to the left; I don't know about everybody else, but the boyfriend was to the left.
[Laughter]
[Crosstalk]
BEHAR: What does that mean?
GRANGER AND HOSTIN (singing): To the left, to the left. Everything you own in a box to the left.
[Laughter]
GRANGER: Now she's telling us, okay. Quit your job, but, like, understand, I appreciate entrepreneurship, but don't jump off if you are not in a position to do so. You're not Beyoncé.
GOLDBERG: What you really need to be fighting for, is you need to be fighting for less taxes because before the tax laws changed, people had a little extra in their pocket.
HOSTIN: Mm-hmm.
BEHAR: Yeah.
GOLDBERG: They always had a little -- you had a little -- you saved a little, and a little rental house.
HOSTIN: And you’ve been saying that forever.
GOLDBERG: And I have been saying this forever. We need to change these tax laws because they've full of boo.
