Slavery out of bounds. Okay, an extreme example. Sorry your genteel sensibilities can't handle that example.
Okay, so here's another one -- during the WWII island fighting, the Japanese told the indigenous peoples of the islands that American soldiers would commit atrocities on them. Instead of greeting the American soldiers, the indigenous folks jumped off cliffs to their deaths. The propaganda wasn't true. Their deaths were based on fears ginned up by propaganda.
So...shame on me? I don't have any shame. My Grandma tried that shaming sh-t on me and it didn't work. Even added the wagging finger and condescending tone for emphasis. "Grandma, those statements are bullsh-t, and you know it!", I used to say.
Shaming is a tactic intended to induce guilt and nullify statements or behaviors the "shamer" doesn't feel comfortable with. Sorry, I see through it. Propaganda is propaganda. It's intended to manipulate you into a decision that is favorable to the propagandist.
Can you see now that my issues is with bullsh-t company propaganda? No, a job at SAS isn't the same as being indentured on a plantation. No, it isn't about reclaiming your life in the midst of war. It is, however, heavy on propaganda. Heavier than other places I've worked, and much heavier than places where other family members have worked.
My contention is that this propaganda generated false fears for your safety in the wider world -- it tethered you here, to this island, and possibly limited your earning and development potential. Can you see the wider point now?
Back to the previous message -- The "most important assets" line was baloney. If folks were such important assets, why did the company skimp on employee development and training, unless it was some SAS homegrown class that was being run for paying customers? Propaganda bullsh-t.
Many companies allow employees to attend conferences, and they reimburse professional memberships. Don't recall that happening much at SAS. A lack of development isn't consistent with "important assets".
Many companies offer educational benefits. SAS has deep ties to NC State. Sh-t, he probably could have negotiated some great deals with them. But as an employee, your company-sponsored educational opportunities are only Acapella University? That's the school where you can sing about your tuition bills without accompaniment. Other companies will reimburse for flagship state schools, like NC State. Again, important assets and such. Don't all crash in rush through the bottleneck at the gate at 4:30.
"We've never had a layoff". Up until that time, they'd never had a large employee reduction event that fit the "legal definition" and requirements for a layoff. But they did target employees for "disappearing" in small batches. What the he-l do you call those? Those are layoffs. It was a PR gimmick based on a legal definition, rather than a common definition. Makes you feel all safe, until it happens to you.
This place is simply a job. No more, no less. A job that many stay at for far too long, for either good or bad reasons. The wider world moves forward. The wider world produces products that sell, along with all the intangible skills that accompany that. The wider world doesn't operate like a charity.
If you have no other equivalent or better opportunities, than this is a great place. But if you do, you are limiting yourself here. Cut through the PR bullsh-t, cult dynamics, and simply call it what it is -- a dead end job with no equity, no development, and little chance for advancement.