Workers’ only meaningful choice under capitalism is to work or starve.

Evidence

Under capitalism, work is character­ ized not by conjoint, but by hierarchical “communicative experience,” and rigid patterns of dominance and subordinacy, where personal interaction is dictated primarily by rules of procedure set by employers: Dewey’s “volun­ tary disposition” of the worker extends only over the decision to work or starve. — Samuel Bowles and Herbert Gintis, Schooling in Capitalist America, 552

Categorization

• XREF: Contradicts the ‘voluntary disposition’ ideal Dewey credits to workers; connects to the contract-coercion analysis Milgrom framed with exit options. — connects to: Elites moralize contentment to those they exploit.; Formal market equality between buyer and seller masks exploitation inside the enterprise.; Full employment would let workers challenge capitalism itself, not just wages. — Clara E. Mattei, Escape from Capitalism: An Intervention, 256 (+3 more)
• recurring: this claim recurs 2 times within its source

Broader Connections

• Capitalism calibrates incentives to make workers risk death for subsistence #exemplifies (0.82) — Rolf Wiggershaus, The Frankfurt School, 194
• Full employment would let workers challenge capitalism itself, not just wages. #expands (0.80) — Clara E. Mattei, Escape from Capitalism, 256
• Unemployment structurally disciplines workers and lowers labor costs in capitalism #expands (0.80) — Clara E. Mattei, The Capital Order, 150