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The End of Work: The Decline of the Global Labor Force and the Dawn of the Post-Market Era
Jeremy Rifkin, 1996

In this book, Mr. Rifkin addresses the issue of how the advance in technology is displacing workers. The advent of information technology in the past three decades means that fewer workers are now needed to produce goods and services. Will this bring about a crisis caused by mass unemployment?

Conventional thinking: Trickle-down technology - New technology increases productivity, reduces cost, increasing supply of cheap goods, stimulate purchasing power, expand markets, generate more jobs to absorb the displaced workers However, Mr. Rifkin presents data that shows the contrary: the long term trend since the third industrial revolution (utilization of computers) have been
- higher unemployment figures in the long term
- wages reduced (a simple argument would be how not too long ago a working father earned sufficiently to take care of his wife and kids, whereas nowadays typically see both spouses working, and in some cases having two or more jobs)
- working hours increased - First industrial revolution (utilization of steam power) reduced working hours from 80 to 60 hours/week; Second industrial revolution (oil and electricity) - 60 to 40 hours/week; Third ind. rev. has not seen any reduction in working hours but actually increased.

Unemployment has increased and purchasing power of consumers has reduced. Thus, although advance in technology leads to productivity gain, the increase in corporate profit has not been fairly shared with workers. Employers prefer to pocket profits for productivity gain rather than pass on to workers as higher wages. Profit goes first to the share-holders, top managers and knowledge workers. This causes a growing gap between have and have-nots which will eventually lead to sociopolitical upheaval.

Karl Marx: Machinery causes unemployment, workers' wages get bid down lower, fewer consumer with purchasing power

Utopic vision: ICT revolution, higher efficiency, workerless future, vast abundance, wealth, unlimited free time for creative pursuits, techno-paradise

Dystopic vision: mass unemployment causing criminal violence, social upheaval, terrorism, hardship

Mr. Rifkin goes on to demonstrate how technology is displacing workers in all the traditional sectors by citing examples:- Farmer (agriculture), blue collar worker (production), service worker - all gradually being replaced by technology. New sector that has emerged: Knowledge sector (entrepeneurs, scientists, programmers, technicians, educators, consultants)- create new jobs but not enough to absorb displaced workers

Laid-off workers: find new work but lower wage, or set up own business, or do part-time work, or give up altogether and live on welfare (only in some countries).

Rifkin proposes the following: -Productivity gains must be shared by redduction of working hours and steady increase of wages. If working hours are reduced (20 hours/ week?) more workers can be employed. -Greater attention to developing the emerrging third sector (the conventional two sectors being public/government and private/corporation)- social services, voluntary work, community activities. The workers in this sector shall be given a guaranteed minimum income ("social wage" for example derived from taxes). Social transformation of human spirit with a shift from materialism to social values.

.: 5/7/2002 :.

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