Alternatives to a modern world that uses unemployed as a resource [closed]

Question

In a human, modern, developed, technological world, the benefits of modernism begin to deliver bad results. It takes a huge force to concentrate in large cities, housing is unaffordable, jobs have been lost to automation and societies are less developed. Unemployment is reported to be about 5% but it's actually about double that, while the work participation rate has never been higher; it's hard to get off the metaphorical treadmill.

In a classic society, the unemployed would be put to work building some monument (for example, a pyramid). In a medieval society, they would volunteer to build a cathedral. In modern world a few could move to the country, out beyond the commute where zone housing is cheap, and still survive on a modest self help strategy, but a Robin Hood scenario is not viable. For the many unemployed, build a ‘off grid’ NFP and NGO autonomous alternative existence, perhaps an underground facility away from the city may come in useful some time soon.

Over time it may develop into a relatively sophisticated self sustaining system.

Q: How do you organize the unemployed to create an autonomous sophisticated self sustaining system?

Answer 1

Frame challenge:

Your System Cannot Reach Critical Mass Because of Brain Drain

Creating a parallel economy, which appears to be what you are suggesting, requires creative, resourceful, self-starting people. Most of them already have jobs.

Those who don't, who theoretically are building your parallel economy, may be recruited into the regular economy. Those who are not may end up accidentally starting businesses (as Charlie mentions), and again are integrated into the regular economy.

"The Unemployed" is not an identical group to "The Employed." Small country towns have long discussed the question of brain drain, where the most motivated, intelligent, and educated youth want to move somewhere where there are more opportunities. This keeps small towns small, and augments existing population centers. Why do you think land is more expensive in cities in the first place? The most capable of earning tend to converge on cities (centers of opportunity) and compete for the land!

Answer 2

10% unemployment? So Italy? Spain? Greece? You need to remeber that in modern world those people (or most of them) are financially supported by state.
In Egypt it was slaves. In medevial europe there was no such thing as unemployed. What you think were no-skill peasant who worked their tithe to the church by working on cathedrals and such and were PAID in food. They where employed. In a way.

And this is what you're facing. Doing "something" must somehow be better than doing "nothing" and get paid.

Also in comment you mention something completly missing the point. Cathedrals WERE build with "go fund" methods. Where do you think "Foundation/Fundation" comes from? Found was not someone who "found" something. It was someone who funded something. This is not the same as donator. Fundator started something while donator given something to that cause. Fundaor funded creation a religious picture and donator donated it to the museum.

So removing financial gain (or postpone it) you need to give them a cause to work for free. Wikipedia. Stack Exchange. Gaming mod community. But all those don't produce physical product. There is no cost in materials.
To create something self sustaining system you need find a way to sell what it create or to exchange for materials you need. Keeeping i mind that then you will compete with providers of similar "services" that don't charge anything. OR work for exposure.

Answer 3

See stack exchange

None of us are paid, but all of us work in some capacity for the site.

Our goals are decentralized and proposed by other users.

Sometimes we build large and elaborate items to solve personal problems of the community or of individuals.

Have a voting system, and a way to track contributions, people are not paid, but more work means more respect and a higher chance that they will get help when they need it.

a more likely option: start a company

An employee owned group that just allocates resources for itself to solve it's problems will eventually rise if there is a need for it. The only problem is how a company would not be contracted to solve the problem using less resources due to the higher efficiency of an actual company.

Answer 4

If your setting allows it, send them offworld

Governments, seeking to get rid of massive amounts of unemployed, would build large, low cost spaceships to colonize whatever, it doesn't matter to them, as long as they remain away from their territory