Catharine Beecher: Working Women

Catharine Beecher Money Quote saying women are taken advantage of by business owners when they pay little and profit greatly from the work. Catharine Beecher said:
 

 

“Work of all kinds is got from poor women, at prices that will not keep soul and body together, and then the articles thus made are sold for prices that give monstrous prices to the capitalist, who thus grows rich on the hard labor of our sex” — Catharine Beecher

In this quote, Catharine Beecher is criticizing how poor women are exploited for their labor. She notes that poor women are paid extremely low “prices” or wages for various types of “work” or jobs that are barely enough to sustain themselves (“will not keep soul and body together”). Meanwhile, the products and articles made from this poorly compensated female labor are sold at much higher “prices” by “capitalists” or business owners.

These capitalists then make “monstrous profits” off the labor of women while the women themselves remain impoverished despite working hard. Overall, Beecher is highlighting the economic injustice and gender inequality of a system that allows businessmen to enrich themselves greatly through underpaying women for their difficult work.

Birthday: September 6, 1800 – May 12, 1878

Abraham Lincoln: Reasonable Wage

Abraham Lincoln Money Quote saying in text from the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863 that all slaves were to be free and were encouraged to work for pay. Abraham Lincoln said:
 

“I hereby enjoin upon the people so declared to be free to abstain from all violence, unless in necessary self-defence; and I recommend to them that, in all cases when allowed, they labor faithfully for reasonable wages” — Abraham Lincoln

Lincoln held the view that newly freed slaves should be encouraged to work for reasonable wages. By saying they should “labor faithfully for reasonable wages”, Lincoln indicates his belief that compensated labor was an important part of the transition from slavery to freedom. The quote reflects Lincoln’s perspective that former slaves should have the opportunity to earn wages through their own work, rather than be denied compensation or economic independence as they had been under slavery.

Birthday: February 12, 1809 – Death: April 15, 1865

Thomas Jefferson: Common Stock Labor

Thomas Jefferson Money Quote saying we are given land to labor over to produce food and shelter. Small plots and their owners are important to government. Thomas Jefferson said:
 

 

“The earth is given as a common stock for man to labor and live on. The small landowners are the most precious part of a state” — Thomas Jefferson

This quote from Thomas Jefferson expresses the view that the land and natural resources of a country are meant to be used productively by all people, not monopolized by a few. By saying the earth is “given as a common stock”, Jefferson seemed to believe that everyone has an equal right to farm, work and sustain themselves from the land.

Additionally, he calls “small landowners” the “most precious part of a state”, implying that widespread property ownership and independent farming are important for a healthy, prosperous society.

The quote conveys Jefferson’s democratic and agrarian ideals, with an emphasis on distributing land access and economic opportunity as broadly as possible among ordinary citizens, not concentrating it in the hands of a small elite.

Birthday: April 13, 1743 – Death: July 4, 1826

Noam Chomsky: Precariat, Precarious Proletariat

Noam Chomsky Money Quote saying there is a term used to apply to ever more of the working class which are under attack by corporate business interests. Noam Chomsky said:
 

‘Precariat’ of the core labor force, the ‘precarious proletariat’ suffering from the programs of deunionization, flexibilization and deregulation that are part of the assault on labor throughout the world — Noam Chomsky

In this quote, Noam Chomsky is referring to the growing global “precariat” class of workers who lack job security and stable livelihoods. The best interpretation is:

• Chomsky uses the term “precariat” to describe the contingent, temporary or insecure segment of the labor force whose positions are precarious.
• He argues this precariat class has expanded as a result of deliberate policies of deunionization (weakening unions), flexibilization (just-in-time scheduling with no guarantees), and deregulation of labor protections.
• These neoliberal reforms have transferred risk from employers to employees according to Chomsky and created a vulnerable proletariat lacking benefits or protections formerly provided by unions.
• The overall message is one of criticism – Chomsky views the rise of precarious work as part of a coordinated global effort to disempower organized labor and increase corporate control over the workforce by undermining stability, protections, and bargaining power for workers.

Walt Whitman: Despise Riches, Give Alms

Walt Whitman Money Quotation saying do all you can for others financially and devote yourself to doing good above love of money. Walt Whitman said:
 

 

“Despise riches, give alms to every one that asks, stand up for the stupid and crazy, devote your income and labor to others” — Walt Whitman

This quote from Walt Whitman encourages living a generous and altruistic life. It suggests people should not value riches highly or make them a priority (“despise riches”). Instead, it advocates freely giving to those in need (“give alms to every one that asks”) as well as helping the vulnerable like the intellectually disabled (“stand up for the stupid and crazy”).

Whitman also appears to be saying one’s earnings and efforts (“income and labor”) should be devoted primarily to aiding and serving others rather than oneself.

Overall, the quote conveys Whitman’s perspective that true virtue involves showing compassion even for society’s outcasts while freely sharing what one has to improve lives beyond their own according to his worldview at the time.

Birthday: May 31, 1819 – Death: March 26, 1892

Janet Yellen on Housing Wealth Lost

Janet Yellen Money Quotation saying real estate prices for homes have not recovered fully, a loss in American assets for the middle class. Janet Yellen said:
 

 

“Widening inequality resumed in the recovery, as the stock market rebounded, wage growth and the healing of the labor market have been slow, and the increase in home prices has not fully restored the housing wealth lost by the large majority of households for which it is their primary asset” — Janet Yellen

In this quote, Janet Yellen is describing some of the economic inequalities that emerged during the economic recovery following the financial crisis and recession. She notes that as the stock market rebounded, wage growth and improvements in the labor market were slow.

Most households also did not fully regain the housing wealth they had lost, as home price increases did not make up all the value lost. So while some measures of the economy like stock prices improved, the recovery did not equally benefit many workers and households.

Yellen seems to be pointing out that these uneven effects of the recovery contributed to a “widening inequality” where the benefits were not shared proportionally across socioeconomic classes. She is highlighting growing economic disparities as part of the aftermath of the crisis and recession.

Joe Biden: Job = Dignity + Paycheck

Joe Biden saying our employment represents more to us than income, it offers us right to be valued and receive ethical treatment. Vice President Joe Biden said via Twitter on #laborday :
 

 

“My dad used to say: Joey, a job is about a lot more than a paycheck. It’s about your dignity” — Joe Biden

Joe Biden seems to be conveying how his father taught him that work provides more than just income – it also supplies a sense of dignity, pride and purpose.

His point appears to be that having stable employment allows people to support themselves and feel they are contributing value through their efforts, which is meaningful beyond the monetary rewards.

Biden’s father encouraged him that a job is important for maintaining one’s self-respect and feeling like a valuable member of the workforce and community.

The quote emphasizes the psychological and social benefits of career, in addition to the financial benefits, that can positively shape one’s identity and well-being according to this view.

"My dad used to say: Joey, a job is about a lot more than a paycheck. It’s about your dignity." -VP Biden to workers on #LaborDay

— Vice President Biden (@VP) September 1, 2014

William H. Gross at Expense of Labor

William H. Gross Money Quotation saying in his investment letter for bond fund PIMCO, that he feels guilty for earning at expense of the working man and labor. William H. Gross said:
 

 

“Having gotten rich at the expense of labor, the guilt sets in and I begin to feel sorry for the less well-off” — William H. Gross

William H. Gross seems to be referring to how he accumulated wealth by running a business that relied on paid labor. However, at some point he begins to feel guilty because his own financial success was achieved in part by paying workers less than what their labor was truly worth. As a result, many of these workers were “less well-off” than him.

So Gross is acknowledging that his riches came at the relative expense of his employees, and this realization triggers feelings of remorse and sympathy for those who helped make him wealthy but did not share equally in the profits and rewards of the business.