85% of the time, when someone says "Work Ethic" they mean "Willing to let other areas of their life suffer in order to make their employer notice them and maybe give them a raise."
Woman who puts her job on pause to parent full time? No one says anything about her 'work ethic'. Odds are they'll probably bemoan the negative impact on her career- "Too bad she let her job suffer to have a family..."
But the teen who works 3 jobs and neglects family, friends and leisure so they can pay for college classes (on top of the 3 jobs), why they have a great Work Ethic! They're willing to sacrifice mental and physical health on the altar of Paid Employment! Go them!
Putting heart and soul into a creative project and trying to market it? "Get a real job!"
Put in 80 hours a week of back-breaking labor because your boss says so? "So motivated! A real go-getter!"
Put in 80 hours a week of back-breaking labor because your boss says so? "So motivated! A real go-getter!"
We've literally enshrined causing yourself suffering and laboring unreasonably hard under unreasonable conditions as the epitome of "a good work ethic".
It's BS.
It's BS.
