Some coworkers and I were discussing today the concept of “lobster pay.” That is, what one gets paid for working the worst shift possible. We’re at a newspaper, so this is naturally the overnight shift.
But we couldn’t figure out where the hell the term came from. We couldn’t find any logical connection between working a bad shift and lobsters at all. Maybe this is just a Michigan thing, just a newspaper thing, or just a regional thing, but I’d really like to know how the term originated.
I once worked at a hospital that paid a 20% premium to employees who worked the graveyard shift. Although I never heard the term “lobster pay,” it makes perfect sense. Lobsters are delicious and expensive. If you work the graveyard shift for considerably more money, it’s like you’re getting lobster. Or at least, now you can afford it.
A quick search of Google for “lobster pay” turns up basically nothing. Until I’m convinced otherwise, I have to believe what we have here is a phrase you made up. Now all you have to do is make up a cool story of its origin (rastahomie has helped you out here). Oh, and convince people to use it. Good luck!
Although this is simply a guess, i think it makes as much sense as the others offered so far: Lobstering is hard, demanding, stressful work - literally months of 18 hour days on a cramped ship in cold water. It’s a rare breed who can successfully handle the work required. Those that can, however, are extremely well rewarded financially [typically as a straight percentage of the market value of the catch]. It’s not uncommon to make more in a few months than most straights would earn in a year of 9-5. The hypothesis, then, is that ‘lobster pay’ stems from this - Extra dough for working a hard or undesirable shift or job.