A symbiotic relationship

Mutualism at its best

Symbiotic relationships of differing specifies with mutual benefit exist throughout nature. Bees flit from flower to flower, gathering pollen to feed their hives all-the-while pollinating future blooms while they feast. Coral reefs house multitudes of fish providing protection from predators while its guests make meals of the seaweeds and algae that would otherwise edge out the coral for crucial space and sunlight. Adjusting our eyes to the low glow of overhead fluorescent lighting, and ears attuned not to the buzz of worker bees but for the humming drone of office chatter, we can see that the modern workplace environment is not a far leap from the flower field or deep-sea ecosystems.

Alien or otherworldly interference theories notwithstanding, the Pyramids were erected in Giza, Rome was built in a bit more than a day, and one can meander all 13,000 miles of the Great Wall of China thanks to the impact of brute human labor. Whether hand-chiseling granite blocks to push up the mountainside of Machu Pichu or long-hauling a truckload of fidget spinners 11 hours cross-country to complete a 2-day fulfillment commitment, human labor keeps our world spinning and the lights on. So, what does the employer contribute to the arrangement?

Though an existential argument can be made that without organized resources and the industrialization of society we would all still be scouring the brush for our next meal - the more pragmatic answer is: compensation. An employer provides an hourly, by-job, or salaried rate commensurate with the labor product of the worker to establish an employment relationship. On top of cold hard cash, the ubiquitous employee-focused PTO, employer-funded medical benefits, and 401k plans of today began appearing in the late 1800s (and were further complicated by tax laws, wars, and the like) as products of the inherent tension of an employer demand for the employee supplied labor. Today, that same tension manifests in things like casual dress codes, mental health days, and kombucha on-tap.

As it is with nature, an employment relationship is subject to the ebbs and flows of the environment around it. A brighter petal may sway the bee from its regular flower patch to the next field. An underground eruption or an oil spill may destroy the coral reef leaving its piscatory inhabitants afloat in a sea of predators. The fine balance of a symbiotic existence for employers and employees is also subject to profit margins that need to sustain natural disasters, market swings, or one too many ping-pong tables in the breakroom.

The bumble bee doesn’t realize the wealth of pollen it’s missing in the primrose field over the next hill. And it’s hard to imagine the clownfish could have the wherewithal to protect its coral home from the threat of pollution. However, this is where the symbiotic relationship between employer and employee should be distinguished by its contributors – us big-brained humans.

Employers who understand the need to keep their proverbial flower patch in bloom to retain employee investment and employees who understand the influences that can impact the security of their proverbial coral reef homes can actively work together to maintain the stasis of their mutually beneficial relationship. Transparency, awareness, and shared motivation all work hand-in-hand to create a better, more sustainable working environment. Unlike the fish and the bees, with a plan in place and a culture of mutual respect, workers can act with the best interest of the company in mind and, in turn, employers can approach employees as more than the units of labor that they produce.

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