Book Description

The backlash against outsourcing American jobs to countries like India had transformed into an anti-immigrant and anti-Indian atmosphere lately. While looking at outsourcing and high-tech visa programs from a completely different angle --and giving an enjoyable account of Indian programmers -- this book answers, in an extremely balanced way, the following complicated questions that have been raised by many American programmers, talkshow hosts, news anchors and politicians:

. If outsourcing is inevitable, what’s next for Americans?

· Did America really benefit from immigrant programmers?

· Was there never a need to bring immigrant programmers to the U.S.?

· Are Indian immigrant programmers nothing but corporate lapdogs?

· Are Indian programmers dumb as rocks and incapable of thinking outside of the box?

· Did Indian immigrant programmers support the September 11th attacks?

· Did Americans invent everything that belongs to the computer industry?

· Is the Indian education system far below world standards?

· Is there an organized Indian mafia in American universities that hires only Indian cronies? ... Read more

Book Description

The most significant domestic issue of the 2004 elections is unemployment. The United States has lost nearly three million jobs in the last ten years, and real employment hovers around 9.1 percent. Only one political analyst foresaw the dark side of the technological revolution and understood its implications for global employment: Jeremy Rifkin.

The End of Work is Jeremy Rifkin's most influential and important book. Now nearly ten years old, it has been updated for a new, post-New Economy era. Statistics and figures have been revised to take new trends into account. Rifkin offers a tough, compelling critique of the flaws in the techniques the government uses to compile employment statistics.

The End of Work is the book our candidates and our country need to understand the employment challenges-and the hopes-facing us in the century ahead. ... Read more

Reviews (23)

A Great Compilation Of Labor History inAmerica
I must admit that when I read this book, I was a bit dissappointed at the lack of new information. As a student of labor history, I had read previously many of the ideas and concepts that Rifkin expands upon in several other books. I only wished I had picked up this one book, prior to reading all the others. It would have saved me much time and money.

In short, Rifkin decribes the transition of the worker from pre-industrial revolution, through the era of machines and mass-production, and the advent of the information age in which he predicts there will be fewer and fewer workers. His analysis describes how this effects the worker, organizational make-up, employment relationships, and even how government has been forced to change to accomodate the modern economy.

I believe that anyone interested in the dynamics of technology and globalism on the workforce will find Rifkin's work very interesting, well-written, and easy to read.

A worthwhile read...
Rifkin's work, with a foreword from perhaps one of the most socialist mainstream economists of our day, Robert Heilbroner, of the New School for Social Research, addresses squarely the problems caused by technology replacing labor in today's rapidly changing globalized economy. Since only educated Americans read these days, fully 75%-85% of the U.S. population will never be exposed to the author's insights. Therefore, the solutions presented by Rifkin will fall on deaf ears; and perhaps, they should. Technology as the driving force for social change, as in every other epoch of modern human history, is carving out a niche for the technologically informed individuals. For the sociologists out there, is a new "class" (heaven forbid) being constituted? I think so. What will be the political, economic, and sociological result? Most likely not much different than the impacts of the past epochs: capital/wealth concentration to those individual and institutions who own and control the "means of production" (my apologies to those made nauseous by Marxist arguments) or, in this case, those who control the creation and production of information- or knowledge-based technologies (read Intel, Microsoft, Oracle, Time Warner, Disney, GE, Westinghouse). Capitalism has survived in various forms (despite Mr. Marx's assertions) for thousands of years whether in the form of feudalism, mercantilsm, imperialism, corporatism, or today's state-sponsored global corporatism. Therefore, a suggestion to all of those of the laboring classes: Why not give in? Accept benevolent corporate benefactors in the best case, or non-wage-based, total private corporate slavery in exchange for room and board, minimal disease care, and survival. Why struggle and compete against your neighbors, friends, and family members, when wage slaves can never "win" the battle against technological advancements and corporate-statist, social organization? Technologically-disenfranchised wage slaves of the world unite! Instead of the public welfare state of the last half of the twentieth century, financed primarily by regressive payroll taxes levied against the working class, accept defeat; demand benevolent, corporate socialist slavery!

Rifkin is a neo-Malthusian
This book was ok in that it did a good job in describing workplace dislocations caused by new technology, but in many ways, its the same old situation. If one is looking for a very clearly articulated portrayal of these dislocations in the modern time, then one will like this book. I disagree with all of the doom and gloom, however. This sort of doom and gloom reminded me of the Malthus's writings about overpopulation and fears of machinery in the late 19th century, both of which I view as very discredited observations.

There will always be dislocations as result of technological progress; and as tragic as it is, one cannot progress without rendering something obsolete. But we are nowhere near a post-market nor a post-scarcity era.

Everyday more relevant.
Amazon does not allow to scale a book differently for the message and for the way the message is brought. For the message I would give a 5 , for the way a 4, for the solutions a 3.
The theme brought is one of the principal societal trends of today and debit to the current economic crisis. The decline of the working middle class and work as the core of wealth, is becoming inescapable for anyone reading the economic pages in the newspapers or making a living by working in a corporation (I am an ERP consultant). A book written before 1995 has become even more actual in 2003, the temporary relief during the 4 bubble years 98-01 notwithstanding, the economy is a Medusa raft. Why Gore was not allowed or not finding funding to make it a campaing theme is a perfectly understandable drama.
The way it is brought: most of the evidence and working out of the theme is anecdotal and circumstantial, that makes for interesting and fast reading but leaves you without the solidity of scientific proof. There are no statistics, no graphs, no formulas, nothing of the kind. I did not need convincing of the truth of what is happening and those who are not will not by statistics or facts alone, but I like scientifically verifiable facts and figures.
The solutions: undoubtably the non-market sector, guaranteed annual income and income transfers will have to play a role and Rifkin sites a wealth of names and studies supporting this. What I want to see are figures showing how it all adds up: how much redistribution, what are the required tax levels, what are the income levels needed to sustain a 'volunteer' middleclass, what are the permissable income gaps to make it work ?

My Radical Point of View
The title of this book should be My Radical Point of View. Although I did enjoy this book and the decade by decade review of the history of the American workforce and its laws, I found Mr. Rifkin's views quite radical even in the post 9/11 economy. It is very difficult to believe that the world will become a workerless society as the author would like us to believe. There will always be the need for people to fix the machines that Mr Rifkin believes will replace humans. He also does not address one of the largest employers of people that will never be in the technology age, the healthcare industry.

Our society and economy will always have its ups and downs, but it has always recovered. Since 9/11 most of the jobs that were eliminated were technology positions. This is in direct contrast with the main idea of the book. It would be naive to believe that technolgy has not replaced humans because of the advances in machinery and computers, but to the extent The End of Work would like us to believe is foolish.

Hopefully there will be a sequel to this book in 20 years to see how correct Mr. Rifkins views are, but I would tend to believe we will still all have jobs and not be out of work. ... Read more

Book Description

Turn the tables on termination! Firing Back gives you the ammunition you need to take charge and secure the best possible severance package. You'll find powerful, effective strategies for negotiation, as well as clear guidelines for creating the best conditions for your financial future. You'll also find scores of illuminating real-life stories —some tough, some hilarious —from people who've been there and survived. Here's what you need to know about:

• Reading the signs of impending termination
• Managing the termination meeting
• Countering your employer's negotiation tactics
• Cutting a successful exit package
• Deciding whether to take your employer to court for illegal actions
• Signing a favorable settlement and release agreement
• Preserving your financial gains and minimizing out-of-pocket expenses.

Visit the authors' Web site at http://www.firingback.com ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Strong Medicine for Victims of Firing
Jodie-Beth Galos and Sandy McIntosh have written an extremely useful book for those who have been unjustly fired or "downsized." The authors provide a comprehensive plan for deciding what the terminated (or soon to be terminated) employee wishes to accomplish, what s/he can, in fact, accomplish, how, precisely, to enter into negotiations and pursue and monitor each phase of the process, how to reach a satisfactory settlement, and, finally, how to manage money while out of work. This clearly and elegantly written book features a balance of realistic stories about firing and negotiation processes and appropriately technical and involved legal and financial information.

Save your money
This book is terrible.The "real life situations" used to convey points are so contrived they are obviously made up.This book is written on a sixth grade level and would only apply to your situation if you live in a sitcom.Very poor and possibly financially dangerous advice.Seek information elsewhere.

Puts you in the driver's seat when they're driving you out
This book takes the reader from a position of helplessness in the firing process to that of equals negotiating the best transition out of a work situation. While nothing will ever make the process of losing your job pleasant, this book covers all of the ins and outs of making sure that you get the best exit deal that you can, and that you don't fall apart in the time between jobs. Covering the time from before you lose your job (Yes, Virginia, there may be signs that it is coming) through the process of negotiating your exit, and what to do after it's all over, this book gives a solid, sensible approach to handling yourself in the one crisis few of us anticipate. This book tells you what to do, and more importantly, what not to do when you are being fired. Most people don't think about being fired until it's all over. Get the book and be prepared. It can happen to you.

"Firing Back" is a must for a financial planner's library.
When a client faces a daunting task of pulling his life together after being fired, usually the last thing he wants to do is "deal" with the ex-employer. This book effeciently steps the employee through the maze of beaurocratic nightmares that must be addressed. --Pam Pearson, pearsonfin@aol.com ... Read more

Book Description

A Mouthful of Rivets is the oral history of the women who took partin World War II on the homefront. In more than one hundred interviews, Nancy Baker Wise and Christy Wise create a textured portrait of the challenges and triumphs these powerful women experienced. Each woman vividly describes how she overcame discrimination, harassment, emotional and physical challenges, and inadequate training to successfully meet the needs of defense production while bringing the American economy to its height.

... Read more

Reviews (1)

An Interesting Approach
The authors of this book took an interesting approach to writing this historical book. It is written as an oral narrative of the women who lived and worked during World War II. Each chapter begins with some comments and clarifications from the authors describing a following short conversation from the women that they talked to in researching the book. These narratives were helpful with understanding what the women were talking about. "A Mouthful of Rivets" takes the reader from the beginning of World War II, until after the war ended and the women were faced with unemployment. The trials and tribulations each woman and her family faced were beautifully reconstructed in their own words. We learn what is was like for these young, courageous women to bravely enter a predominantely male work force; and we watch them suffer the humiliation of having to step aside from their jobs to go back to the kitchen once the soldiers returned from war. It was neat to read the stories that they had to tell. They were very compelling and put life in a different perspective from the way we live today. The reason that I only gave this book 3 stars was because it was a bit difficult for me to read. It took me awhile to muddle through the unfamiliar writing styles of these two authors because it doesn't read like a novel at all. Just as I was really getting into the story a woman was telling, the chapter was through and I was plunged into a different topic altogether. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in this period of time, but it does take some patience to adjust to this form of writing. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

A Great Book- With Effective but Challenging Recommendations
The book argues that fewer people have jobs and more people are working in less traditional arrangements such as temporary work, consulting, and micro businesses. The book recommends that you assess your desires, abilities, temperament, and assests, and it suggests managing your self like a company.

This review was written as part of the Annotated Bibliography of Learning A Living; A Guide to Planning Your Career and Finding a Job for People with Learning Disabilities, Attention Deficit Disorder, and Dyslexia

Yesterday never really mattered tomorrow never really came
I first read this book some seven years ago as a text for a class intended to help graduating students prepare themselves for the world of work. Interestingly one of those graduates was intending to work in a start up business with digital cameras which he believed would emerge as the dominant force in the picture business. Probably telling the future is not a good business to be in.

Here in Northern New Jersey everyone knew, and still knows, all about downsizing and organizational flattening and outsourcing. Since the collapse of the tech-bubble, many of those independent contractors are now looking for work and escaping the computer field alltogether in the face of falling wage rates, excess supply and new entrants from college who expect a lot less!

Revisiting this book gives one the opportunity to rexamine it's claims and, not surprisingly, finds them lacking. To be fair, much of what the originator describes has come to pass but not in the way that he suggests.

The main lesson that I come away with from this book is that markets are so powerful that the competitive environment determines the shape of the organization. Obviously, some would say but this is only half of the story. Combine the power of markets which is, after all, only the result of individuals exercising choices, with a proactive government and you get a pretty unstoppable force. If the dollar is high then imports are [inexpensive] as compared to domestic goods which puts intense competitive pressure on companies who then must cut costs. Add to the mix a policy of a free trade area as NAFTA and a competitive labor market and there is even more pressure on costs. Finally have a boyant stock market and increased wealth and you have lots of venture capital looking for profit. The result, falling unemployment with little inflation and downward intense pressure on costs leading to more business. The picture is muddied somewhat by rising benefits costs but they become a force against rising costs too,

What I am describing is the pressure on business to focus on their core activities and float off internal activities which can be done by service companies contracted for the purpose. Wage bill too high - make workers contractors who then have to pay for their own benefits or better still get the states to introduce basic minimum health care schemes.

This nirvana of the dejobbed economy never really existed. Sure there are more small businesses and self-employed, sure there is more flexibility among the workforce but there is also compulsion, workfare, for the unemployed as well as the requirement for many families to work two, three or more jobs to make ends meet.

Hayek the Nobel prizewinner foresaw the person described in this book many years ago as did his mentor Mises. To be successful they argued the individual must market themselves as a self-entrepreneur. Very true.

This book is an excellent description of a possible future in the light of developments in business at the time. The author is to be commended for the clarity of his thought and exposition. However, he ignores the bigger picture and the implications of a global economy and powerful, interventionist governments. Perhaps he would like to write an update to this book in the light of the events of the last seven years.

A stimulating glimpse of the future
In the era of downsizing and mergers, one hears far too many people bewailing what we've "lost": job security, well-defined career paths, companies that feel responsible for the people who work for them, employee loyalty. Bridges offers a more positive perspective: "work" as we conceive of it was an artifact of the Industrial Revolution, with its view of workers as cogs in a machine; and, as that rigid structure gradually disappears, so will our present concept of "jobs" and "careers."
This was one of the first ripples in what has become a massive wave of books on the changing business world, including recent examples like "Blur" -- but it's refreshing, easy to read, and can change your whole view of what "work" entails. I think it's especially important for young people still in school to read it: don't waste your efforts preparing for a traditional "career" that may not be there five years after you graduate; focus on developing your talents, your skills, and your entrepreneurial spirit instead, because those are what will be worth the most to you in the future.

A management guru's formula for success in the job market.

I strongly recommend this book for those feeling overwhelmed by the current challenges in the job market. Bridges wrote the best-sellers "Transitions" and "Managing Transitions," and when not authoring has been a management guru for a couple decades. "Job Shift" serves as a primer for managing your own career in what he views as a fundamentally new career marketplace.

The main thesis of his latest book is that our country, and indeed our world, is currently in the midst of the Second Great Job Shift. The first was caused by the Industrial Revolution, when people transitioned from village life to urbania. Along with this shift came a redefinition of the very meaning of the word, "job." In the village, it meant a task or project, generally of finite duration and paid fee-for-service if paid at all. (The etymology of the word "job" apparently goes back to "hauling dung.") In the Industrial Age, a "job" was actually a position in the hierarchy of a company, with a clearly-defined set of responsibilities and paid a salary. As long as one stayed properly within the confines of the job description, one could count on advancement up the organizational ladder.

The current Second Great Job Shift, according to Bridges, is the Death of the Job, at least as it has been defined for the past two hundred years. The Information Age is forcing companies to move and respond more quickly to shifts in markets while at the same time allowing increased automation of information processing. Companies are replacing the traditional corporate structure with project-oriented organization. People are assigned to projects, and performance is evaluated based on the project's outcome, not on how well one fits into some job description.

Bridges has recommendations for individuals, companies, and even governments for addressing and dealing with this Job Shift. While I'm not entirely convinced that I agree with all of Bridges' vision, his argument is extremely powerful and thought-provoking. It is certainly a different approach than I've encountered in other job search books, and has a certain appeal just on that basis. I highly recommend it as a well-written source of ideas for anyone in the job market, even those who are happily employed. Instead of telling you how to write a resume or shine in an interview, Bridges looks at the overall job environment, and offers general advice on the mentality and approach needed to advance yourself. Reading this book in close conjunction with Bolles' classic "What Color is Your Parachute?" is a frightening, exciting, and empowering experience. Whether you end up agreeing and taking Bridges' advice or not, I think it is always helpful to get exposed to another way of viewing a problem.

[Longer versions of this review have been previously submitted by the author to the Young Scientists' Network and Network for Emerging Scientists' online discussion forums.] ... Read more

Book Description

Faith in the free market--the idea that, for instance, profit-seeking managed care companies will improve the health care delivery system--has become a basic tenet of public policy debate. But as Joel Blau demonstrates in this eye-opening book, so-called "free market" programs have been a dismal failure, heightening inequality, lowering the median standard of living, and steadily eroding the quality of our social and political life.

In Illusions of Prosperity, Blau launches a far-reaching assault on idea that "the market" knows best. Blau writes that while the share of the national income held by the bottom four fifths of the population (the poor and broad middle class combined) has continued to decline, the top fifth gained 97 percent of the increase in total household income between 1979 and 1994. "Few experiments," Blau comments, "yield such clear outcomes. Although many had hoped to benefit from the new market economy, this affluent fifth is the only segment of the population that truly has."Blau looks at recent reforms in NAFTA, education, job training, welfare, and much more, showing that the new social policies have made matters worse, because reforms that rely on the market can't compensate for the market's deficiencies. Instead, he calls for a stronger, more caring government to counter the debilitating effects of the market, and he urges the development of the broadest possible political alliances to ensure economic security.

Sure to raise controversy, Illusions of Prosperity turns today's conventional wisdom inside out, making a profound case for the importance of a strong government in a world where markets do not have all the answers. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

The kind of analysis to be expected from a social worker.
I agree that "The statistics that are presented are facts that will spark conversations because many of the unbelievable stats." The vast majority of the statistics are unbelievable, either because of negligence in their calculation, or problems with invalid inferences from them.

Blau's personal bias's plague the text, and render it as useful and believable as a textbook from the U.S.S.R., although because of the well known publisher a lot of otherwise educated people with average data analysis skills might be tempted to overlook some obvious errors. That would be a grave mistake.

Social workers play an important role in our society- increasing the efficiency of those who have suffered some kind of trauma (those who have witnessed murders, or been raped, for instance). However- this book highlights the need for increased scrutiny of claims by those who lack training in the areas they write on.

Illusions of Prosperity
.I chose this book because I thought that the book was going to be discussing the stock market and its effects on the economy.I wanted to read about the stock market because I find it very interesting.I believe that Illusions of Prosperity is a very well written book.There are many facts and statistics throughout the book that kept the reading interesting and made me really stop and think.Joel Blau shifted from topic to topic very well and what I thought was the best part about the book was that he gets right to the point and does not drag out any topics.There are a large amount of topics that are discussed in this book.I would definitely recommend this book to anyone.The insights and the ideas that Joel Blau shares throughout the book are well written and presented very well.I really like the way that Joel writes because he covers so much information and the information he gives is mind-boggling.I would recommend this book to anyone who is interesting in learning amazing facts about a wide range of topics.Joel Blau covers almost every topic that deals with economic security, from the stock market, wages, and age discrimination.I thought some of the best topics that were covered in this book were:The income barrier between different races and sex, facts about the number of businesses that move to different countries for cheaper labor and the amazing differences in labor costs, unbelievable unemployment facts, and the differences in jobs with higher levels of education.The statistics that are presented are facts that will spark conversations because many of the unbelievable stats.I would give this book 3.5 stars out of 5.

A Very Disappointing Book
First an admission: my politics are free-market libertarian -- quite the opposite of Joel Blau's collectivism.

Nevertheless, I opened this book --published by a distinguished press -- with an open mind, sincerely hopingto learn as well as to be challenged.Neither happened.

Essential toBlau's case for greater government intervention and more "economicdemocracy" is his factual claim that recent prosperity is an illusion,save for all but the richest Americans.He cites familiar statistics andstudies purporting to prove that the average American household reached itspeak of earning power in 1973 -- and that it's been downhill ever since.(At one point Blau actually says that prosperity of the sort that Americansknew during the first 30 years following WWII has "disappeared withouta trace."Is he serious?)

From time to time, Blau seems torecognize the many problems that have been pointed out with the data herelies upon, but his efforts to meet those objections are weak.Moreimportantly, Blau totally ignores the important research done by economistsshowing that the average American worker's ability to consume almost allgoods and services available on the market is greater today than it was atany time in the past -- including 1973.

If you're looking forwell-researched, well-written books that offer clear pictures of the changein American living standards over the years, Blau's book isn't one. Instead, read W. Michael Cox and Richard Alm, MYTHS OF RICH & POOR(Basic Books, 1999), and Stanley Lebergott, PURSUING HAPPINESS (PrincetonUniversity Press, 1993).These books are written by economists who knowhow to use, evaluate, and report empirical data.

In short, no seriousperson who evaluates the evidence objectively can conclude that the averageAmerican worker hasn't enjoyed substantial improvements in living standardsover the past quarter century.Indeed, even those tiny handful ofAmericans (about 5%) who never move out of the lowest income-earningquintile have enjoyed significant increases in their ability to purchasealmost all goods and services available on the market.

In addition topainting a woefully distorted picture of reality, Blau's theoreticalarguments display a grave failure to grasp the most basic economicprinciples.For example, in arguing against free trade, he naively assumesthat "business" is a great monolith -- monolithically in favor offree trade because free trade gives it access to cheap labor.

But ontrade issues there is no monolithic business interest.Some businessesfavor free trade because it promises them greater profits, while otherbusinesses oppose free trade because it will subject them to greatercompetition.Ask USX if it supports free trade in steel.The answeryou'll get is a resounding "no!"Ask American sugar farmer ifthey support freer trade in sugar.Again, "no!"Ask U.S.airlines if they're willing to let foreign air carriers transportpassengers on domestic U.S. routes."Not a chance!"

In truth,business people have been among the greatest and most successful opponentsof free trade throughout history.To assume, as Blau does, that free tradehelps business at the expense of workers and consumers is among the mosttired and well-refuted objections to free trade.

Countless other flawsmar this book.I cannot in good conscience recommend that anyone read it.

DEMOCRATIC LEFT, SPRING 1999
Blau argues that our veneration of markets has lowered the living standards of most Americans, and made us more vulnerable to the next economic crisis.... In an age of an 11,000 Dow index, and wide celebrationof general prosperity, Blau exposes the truly bifurcated nature of the U.S.economy at the millenium: The richest one percent of Americans now have 39percent of the net national wealth.Blau reminds us that his level isexceeded only by the period immediately prior to the Great Depression.....ILLUSIONS OF PROSPERITY reminds one of the sort of comprehensive, buteminently readable social policy analyses Michael Harrington wrote in pastdecades.Joel Blau, as in his previous book, THE VISIBLE POOR:Homelessness in the United States, is clearly carrying on the tradition.

Advance Praise for ILLUSIONS OF PROSPERITY
"Joel Blau has written a thoughtful and cogent analysis of the state of American society today, the impact of the market system on working families, and the consequences likely to flow from weakening the safety netfurther.The "Next Deal" solutions he proposes -- fullemployment policies, living wages, protection of the right to organize,stepped up infrastructure investments and meaningful social and welfareprotections -- are cornerstones of any economic and political democracy,which lawmakers would do well to keep in mind as they shape policy for the21st century." -- JOHN SWEENEY, PRESIDENT, AFL-CIO

"Blau hascompiled a powerful brief against the neo-laissez faire doctrines that havedominated American economic and social welfare policy for threedecades." -- RICHARD CLOWARD AND FRANCES FOX PIVEN

"Clearlywritten, closely argued, and carefully documented, ILLUSIONS OF PROSPERITYis an indispensable guide to public policy in these uncertain times.Blaunot only charts how the American governement's embrace of laissez-faireideology has wrecked havoc he tells us what can be done to undo the damage. Must reading for anyone who cares about what's happening to the averageAmerican." -- CHARLES NOBLE, author of WELFARE AS WE KNEW IT ... Read more

Book Description

The New Welfare brings together a group of leading scholars to examine issues relating to unemployment and social security in Europe, focusing on how to promote employment and how to reform social security.The crucial issue of the financing of public pension systems is also addressed, including an examination of the politically difficult solution of a more fully-funded system.
... Read more

Book Description

Americans today often associate scientific and technological change with progress and personal well-being. Yet underneath our confident assumptions lie serious questions. In Inventing Ourselves Out of Jobs? Amy Sue Bix locates the origins of this confusion in the Great Depression, when the social and economic crisis forced many Americans to re-examine ideas about science, technology, and progress. Growing fear of "technological unemployment"—the idea that increasing mechanization displaced human workers—prompted widespread discussion about the meaning of progress in the new Machine Age. In response, promoters of technology mounted a powerful public relations campaign: in advertising, writings, speeches, and World Fair exhibits, company leaders and prominent scientists and engineers insisted that mechanization ultimately would ensure American happiness and national success.

Emphasizing the cultural context of the debate, Bix concentrates on public perceptions of work and technological change: the debate over mechanization turned on ideology, on the way various observers in the 1930s interpreted the relationship between technology and American progress. Although similar concerns arose in other countries, Bix highlights what was unique about the American response. In her concluding chapters and epilogue, Bix shows how the issue changed during World War II and in postwar America and brings the debate forward to show its relevance to modern readers. ... Read more

Book Description

The story of the White Furniture Company--a century-old, family-owned business that was bought out by a huge corporate conglomerate and later closed--puts a human face on the economic realities of the 1990s. Bill Bamberger took his revealing and powerful photographs during the last four months of operation on the factory floor, working side by side with the White employees. Cathy Davidson's text focuses on six people who represent every economic level in the American workforce: CEO, executive assistant, middle manager, supervisor, skilled artisan, and manual laborer. All speak the same language of craft, commitment, and community. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

A Very Realistic Approach from a Former Employee
This book does an excellent job of demonstrating the effects of a factory closing in a small southern town. As a former resident of the town (childhood home) and a former worker in the machine room and rubbing room of White's Furniture Factory, I was amazed at the depth of analysis and truthfulness in this book. This book demonstrated how the closing of a factory not only affects the workers, but prior workers, and the entire population of the town. I was surprised to see the pictures that were included that told a story all to themselves. This book is highly recommended for college professors wishing to pursue the effects of a factory closing and other downsizing efforts on a small town's population. A great story line supplemented by outstanding pictures as the authors take the reader through the last years of a 100+ year factory that the entire town centered their lives around. Highly recommended for those interested in the effects of a closing on the local population.

Makes large economic forces take a human face
a reasonably balanced view of a factory closing that doesn't make the owner out to be a devil (although some former workers clearly feel that way). Shows the human side of what happens when decisions are made based on the aseptic "bottom line". If anything, the book is not hard enough on the original family, the 1st generation that admirably built the company and the second generation that let it deteriorate (the book details how the 2 family members at the top didn't even talk to one another and used separate entrances to the building! Is it any wonder the financials deteriorated and they had to sell?)

The only thing missing is an interview with the capitalist that closed the plant. If they tried and he refused the book ought to say so, otherwise it seems that at least a few pages could have been devoted to his side of the story.

All in all, though, a great book to read, as a counterbalance for all of us that invest thru our 401Ks and retirement accounts expecting great returns and divorced from how those returns are obtained (and at what cost to some people).

Extremely touching photos on a poignant subject.
This book, and a traveling exhibit due at Yale this fall and The Smithsonian in early next year, captures the feelings and human aspect of what happens when a family owned furniture factory is closed due to a hostile takeover. The pictures and accompaning text document from an historical and extremely personal perspective the lives of workers in a small town in North Carolina, dependant on each other and the factory, and the devastation that occurs when big city, outside forces make an impersonal decision regarding people 1000 miles away. ... Read more

Book Description

This broad survey of unemployment is a benchmark summary of the authors' position which became hugely influential. This second edition brings the analysis up to date by relating it to recent empirical developments. This book is a major source of reference for both scholars and students. ... Read more

Book Description

The economic boom of the 1990s created huge wealth for the bosses, but benefited workers hardly at all. At the same time, the bosses were able to take the political initiative and even the moral high ground, while workers were often divided against each other. This new book by leading labor analyst Michael D. Yates seeks to explain how this happened, and what can be done about it.

Essential to both tasks is "naming the system"— the system that ensures that those who do the work do not benefit from the wealth they produce. Yates draws on recent data to show that the growing inequality—globally, and within the United States—is a necessary consequence of capitalism, and not an unfortunate side-effect that can be remedied by technical measures. To defend working people against ongoing attacks—on their working conditions, their living standards, and their future and that of their children—and to challenge inequality, it is necessary to understand capitalism as a system and for labor to challenge the political dominance of capitalist interests.

Naming the System examines contemporary trends in employment and unemployment, in hours of work, and in the nature of jobs. It shows how working life is being reconfigured today, and how the effects of this are masked by mainstream economic theories. It uses numerous concrete examples to relate larger theoretical issues to everyday experience of the present-day economy. And it sets out the strategic options for organized labor in the current political context, in which the U.S.–led war on terrorism threatens to eclipse the anti-globalization movement. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

An accessible and serious economic presentation
Leading labor analyst Michael Yates successfully strives to explain why the economic boom of the 1990s benefitted the wealthiest segment of business and society while doing little for the hard-working masses in Naming The System: Inequality And Work In The Global Economy. Aptly discussing a series of related issues including the inequalities that riddle the economic system of capitalism by its very nature (both within and between nations); unemployment and underemployment; contradictions within capitalism; and means for social change that battle for a better world, Naming The System is an accessible and serious economic presentation which has self-evidently been deftly researched and is skillfully argued. A welcome addition to personal and academic Economics Studies reference collections and reading lists, Naming The System is especially recommended to the attention of anyone wanting to understand the rationale behind the importance of placing limits and regulations to ensure a prosperous future for labor and management alike.

Even economists smoke crack
This man lives in a world od distorted reality. Economic equality and poverty is bound to exist reguardless of the mode of production. Capitalism allows democracy, which is the most important issue to me. He talks about Cuba in this book... The have to give up freedom and live in poverty, but their literacy level is the same as our's; which system sounds better? Tjis was a well written book wth ample information, so I probably should have rated it better. However, I hate the message that it sends.

But, some of my best friends are economists
I am not an economist, but some of my best friends are. And much of my work as a labor law professor, has involved dealing with ideas couched in economic terms. Even so, there is a lot about economics as it is really practiced, that comes as a surprise. Several years, when the news was full of predictions from leading economists about the effects of a new policy on the economy, I asked a group of economists whether these sorts of predictions were based on studies of effects in the world. The economists told me that these predictions none of these predictions were ever tested. All that was ever done was to create simplified theories about how the economy worked and then use those theories to make predictions. No one ever checked to make certain those theories were valid.
Imagine what healthcare would be like if doctors and scientists operated this way. Actually, we don't have to imagine. This is how life was in the Middle Ages when doctors tried to balance the body's four humors, and everyone knew the sun revolved around the earth. The models got more and more complex as reality did not jibe with theory.
So all of us have our fates determined by economists whose methods are no more up to date than the 16th century. Consider Alan Greenspan, the hero of the Fed. He and his colleagues for years were convinced that the only way to fight inflation - and inflation had to be fought at all costs - was to raise interest rates any time unemployment fell below 5.8%. The effect was that higher interest rates increased unemployment. In the early 1990's, unemployment began to fall below this danger level, but no inflation appeared. Pressure was put on the Fed not to raise interest rates, enough pressure that they held off. Unemployment plunged ever lower with no inflation. Did the economists admit that their theory had to be discarded based on the evidence/ Of course not. They responded that they needed to refine the theory to account for this aberration from the theory, but the theory was still solid.
Michael Yates does a much better job at leading the reader through classic economic theory and exploring the many ways in which those theories stand unproven - and yet they still rule the world. Yates provides a fair and balanced look at the claims of classic economics for economies and for global trade and demonstrates that there is no evidence to support those claims.
There is no question that Michael Yates is passionate and has strong opinions. He does nothing to hide his views and is fair and open with the reader as he presents his arguments against classical economics and his ideas as to what should replace those disproven theories. I won't even try to summarize the. Yates deserves to be read and his arguments digested in full.
Yates is a wonderful writer and educator. He should be. He had a long teaching career at University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown, among prisoners, and with unionists. He is clear without ever talking down to his audiences. Over the years he has opened up the world of economics to many of us, and through this book will reach even more. I recommend it strongly.

I am not an economist, but some of my best friends are
I am not an economist, but some of my best friends are. And much of my work as a labor law professor, has involved dealing with ideas couched in economic terms. Even so, there is a lot about economics as it is really practiced, that comes as a surprise.

Several years, when the news was full of predictions from leading economists about the effects of a new policy on the economy, I asked a group of economists whether these sorts of predictions were based on studies of effects in the world. The economists told me that these predictions none of these predictions were ever tested. All that was ever done was to create simplified theories about how the economy worked and then use those theories to make predictions. No one ever checked to make certain those theories were valid.

Imagine what healthcare would be like if doctors and scientists operated this way. Actually, we don't have to imagine. This is how life was in the Middle Ages when doctors tried to balance the body's four humors, and everyone knew the sun revolved around the earth. The models got more and more complex as reality did not jibe with theory.

So all of us have our fates determined by economists whose methods are no more up to date than the 16th century. Consider Alan Greenspan, the hero of the Fed. He and his colleagues for years were convinced that the only way to fight inflation - and inflation had to be fought at all costs - was to raise interest rates any time unemployment fell below 5.8%. The effect was that higher interest rates increased unemployment. In the early 1990's, unemployment began to fall below this danger level, but no inflation appeared. Pressure was put on the Fed not to raise interest rates, enough pressure that they held off. Unemployment plunged ever lower with no inflation. Did the economists admit that their theory had to be discarded based on the evidence/ Of course not. They responded that they needed to refine the theory to account for this aberration from the theory, but the theory was still solid.

Michael Yates does a much better job at leading the reader through classic economic theory and exploring the many ways in which those theories stand unproven - and yet they still rule the world. Yates provides a fair and balanced look at the claims of classic economics for economies and for global trade and demonstrates that there is no evidence to support those claims.

There is no question that Michael Yates is passionate and has strong opinions. He does nothing to hide his views and is fair and open with the reader as he presents his arguments against classical economics and his ideas as to what should replace those disproven theories. I won't even try to summarize the. Yates deserves to be read and his arguments digested in full.

Yates is a wonderful writer and educator. He should be. He had a long teaching career at University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown, among prisoners, and with unionists. He is clear without ever talking down to his audiences. Over the years he has opened up the world of economics to many of us, and through this book will reach even more. I recommend it strongly.

The Contradictions of Capitalism and NeoLiberalism
An extremist, disruptive version of capitalism, called neoliberalisim, now dominates the worldwide economic order. Practiced by huge transnational corporations and financial institutions with vast support from central governments, neoliberalism essentially transforms entire societies, destroying traditional ways of life and forcing individuals, sometimes with violence, to conform to its dictates. Not surprisingly, capitalistic institutions unleash immense propagandistic efforts to tout capitalism's unmatched outputs while obscuring the demands and burdens that it places on societies and individuals. "Naming the System" penetrates these purposeful obfuscations and describes the actual workings and impact of capitalism.

The field of neoclassical economics provides a theoretical basis for the workings of capitalism. Though now dominant in universities and economic institutions, the author repeatedly takes issue with its essential premises. Especially irritating is the unwillingness of neoclassical economists to acknowledge the "contradictions" of capitalism, that is, its failure to deliver as predicted. It is difficult to not come to the conclusion that the entire discipline of neoclassical economics is subservient to the business class.

Neoclassical economic theory posits "individuals," all seeking to maximize their self-interests by freely operating in various marketplace settings, as the core actors in capitalism. According to the theory, this "free-market" activity operates within the context of fundamental laws of supply and demand, and will result in socially optimal outcomes. However, to regard all market actors as essentially equal "individuals" is highly misrepresentative. Multi-billion dollar corporations often can monopolize markets, manipulate consumers through advertising, and otherwise leverage their tremendous advantages in resources. But neoclassical economists are loath to admit that the dynamics of power, inequality, and coercion can tilt markets.

A huge gap in the theory of the general benevolence of markets is that a society of self-interested maximizers will often fail to generate even basic, needed social outcomes. Conveniently, neoclassical economists leave it to governments to fill in where markets fail by doing such things as building roads and bridges, providing for national defense and public schools, and providing a legal structure and the enforcement necessary to conduct business. Neoclassicists are far less sanguine about the need to regulate or otherwise deal with the side effects of marketplace actions. According to the theory, self-interested businesses do not have to deal with the social effects of causing environmental degradation in production, laying-off workers, or paying poverty-level wages, because the marketplace will. However, it is simply not likely that the random acts of relatively uninformed and powerless individuals will be aggregated sufficiently to affect social outcomes through the marketplace. Neoclassicists insist that market actors always exercise "free choice." Of course, they have to ignore the fact that such factors as the lack of actual equal opportunity to be well educated and to associate with employment enhancing individuals and the subtle coercion of a large pool of unemployed workers are not freely chosen conditions and do undermine free-market activity.

The author insists that capitalism, or its latest incarnation as neoliberalism, be judged on its worldwide economic performance. Many Third World nations, in exchange for economic assistance, under directives by international, neoliberal economic bodies, such as the World Bank, the IMF, and the WTO, have accordingly opened their economies to global corporations and liberalizing economic forces. But results have hardly been encouraging. Since 1980 there has been no growth in per capita GDP in these countries and they have fallen further behind rich nations, not drawing nearer as predicted. Structural adjustment policies have forced millions of peasants from their lands into sprawling urban ghettos with only sporadic contingent and informal sector work available. It is hard to resist the conclusion that neoliberalism is a mechanism to disadvantage working people and to permit global corporations to exploit them.

The author acknowledges that capitalism can produce a vast array of goods, but that productivity comes at a cost to societies and individuals. Though neoclassicists declared capitalism to be recession proof in the 1990s, capitalism has always lurched from crisis to crisis with a lot of discomfort being delivered to the working class with each recession. Loss of a job can be devastating, but capitalism also relentlessly redefines the nature of work. Capitalism is unconcerned about the inherent worthiness and importance of having and doing meaningful work. It persistently deskills jobs by breaking them into sub-tasks and subjecting them to automation and mechanization. Fewer and fewer workers are permitted to conceptualize, plan, and execute their work in a complete process.

Neoliberal spokesmen often hold that capitalism and democracy are essentially one and the same. But the author points out that it is a fundamental contradiction of capitalism that the freedom that both employers and workers supposedly enjoy when meeting in the labor market disguises a regime of total control within workplaces. It is that unchallengeable control that permits owners to squeeze excessive profits from workplaces. The author digresses with an explanation of Marx's labor theory of value, but the issue is really one of relative power.

Capitalism subtly redefines freedom and democracy. Democracy is no longer located in the political realm involving decision making; it has become the freedom to participate in the marketplace, to act in one's best interest. Social or collective concerns need not trouble an individual self-maximizer - the market will do that automatically. But it has been the collective actions of labor unions and worker-centered political parties that have attempted to tame the worst excesses of capitalism. But the effectiveness of labor unions has often been reduced through both repression and cooptation.

Some radicals contend that the contradictions of capitalism are becoming so evident that it is a foregone conclusion that the working class will become a potent force in their own liberation. But the author is not so enamored of those prospects. The reaction of workers to the depredations of capitalism is often psychological self-destruction, not some form of activism. In addition, capitalism has proven to be highly resilient to challenges. It can usually call upon the full power of the state to defend its interests. And the ideology of consumerism is pervasive and subtly distorting, even equating shopping with revolutionary actions.

Understanding the nature and contradictions of capitalism is certainly a place to begin to contest it. This book does its part well. ... Read more

Book Description

Americans have always believed that economic growth leads to job growth. In this groundbreaking analysis, Stanley Aronowitz argues that this is no longer true. Just Around the Corner examines the state of the American economy as planned by Democrats and Republicans over the last thirty years. Aronowitz finds that economic growth has become "delinked" from job creation, and that unemployment and underemployment are a permanent condition of our economy. He traces the historical roots of this state of affairs and sees under the surface of booms and busts a continuum of economic austerity that creates financial windfalls for the rich at the expense of most Americans. Aronowitz also explores the cultural and political processes by which we have come to describe and accept economics in the United States. He concludes by presenting a concrete plan of action that would guarantee employment and living wages for all Americans.

With both measured analysis and persuasive reasoning, Just Around the Corner provides an indispensable guide to our current economic predicament and a bold challenge to economists and policymakers. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

TECHNOLOGY IS DESTROYING JOBS, BUT HOPE FOR TOMORROW!
This book presents the author's assessment of how today's economy, while generating wealth and capable of recovery from recession, is not generating a commensurate expansion in job opportunities. Advances in technology account for this situation, according to Aronomwitz. His analysis and insights boldly and brilliantly challenge the conventional wisdom that technology advancements produce more jobs than they destroy. He also explores the "price of neoliberal globalization, the Reagan revolution, the Clinton 'Boom,' and the downsizing of America." Aronowitz also concludes that an agenda is needed to create the conditions that would "restore our sense of economic well-being and to reverse the incredible power of large corporations..." that, united with political power, is driving down living standards and bringing about an acceptance of authoritarian forms of economic and political rule.

But the author is not technophobic or pessimistic. He is optimistic. He believes what is needed is a reality-based perspective on our economy; one that employs a "tight safety net," creates labor-intensive jobs that expand the "public good," promotes alternative energy resources, and most importantly, revises our paradigm of "full employment" and the "full-time job." He also sees broader, global implications for this big-picture agenda.

The book offers a compelling, concise case for seeing the U.S. economy (and, contextually, the nation as-a-whole) in a new light, based on solid evidence. This is well-reasoned and robust challenge to 'business-as-usual' economic thinking! It casts a bright light on what may be the 800 pound economic and political guerilla of the 21st century.

If a good nonfiction book is one that informs, stimulates thinking, challenges comfortable mindsets, and sparks the imagination, this one passes the test with flying colors. ... Read more

Book Description

An equilibrium theory of unemployment assumes that firms and workers maximize their payoffs under rational expectations and that wages are determined to exploit the private gains from trade. This book focuses on the modeling of the transitions in and out of unemployment, given the stochastic processes that break up jobs and lead to the formation of new jobs, and on the implications of this approach for macroeconomic equilibrium and for the efficiency of the labor market.

This approach to labor market equilibrium and unemployment has been successful in explaining the determinants of the "natural" rate of unemployment and new data on job and worker flows, in modeling the labor market in equilibrium business cycle and growth models, and in analyzing welfare policy. The second edition contains two new chapters, one on endogenous job destruction and one on search on the job and job-to-job quitting. The rest of the book has been extensively rewritten and, in several cases, simplified. ... Read more

Book Description

Book Description

Chronicles the growing impact of job uncertainty on workers in Europe. ... Read more

Book Description

Europe's mass unemployment and the call for extensive labor market de-regulation have, perhaps more than any other contemporary issue, impassioned political debate and academic research. With contributions from economists, political scientists and sociologists, Why Deregulate Labour Markets? takes a hard look at the empirical connections between unemployment and regulation in Europe today, utilizing both in-depth nation analyses and broader-based international comparisons. ... Read more

Book Description

This book tackles the issue of involuntary employment, examining the issue in the light of Keynesian and Post-Keynesian theory. ... Read more