Quote:
Originally Posted by Richard
4. White working-class men have a strong work ethic.
They used to, but not so much anymore. In 1968, 97 percent of white males ages 30 to 49 who had at most a high school diploma were in the labor force — meaning they either had a job or were actively seeking work. By March 2008 (before the Great Recession), that number had dropped to 88 percent. That means almost one out of eight white working-class men in the prime of life is not even looking for a job. This is not just an issue of “discouraged workers”; this rate of labor force dropouts rose in the boom years of the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s as rapidly as it did in years of recession.
Among white males ages 30 to 49 who do have blue-collar or low-level service jobs, fewer work full time. The percentage of them who worked less than than 40 hours a week increased from 10 percent in 1960 to 20 percent in 2008, rising in good and bad economic times alike.
Time-use surveys have further documented shifting behavior among unemployed men. In the early 2000s, compared with 1985, such men spent less time on job searches, education and training, household work, or civic and religious activities — and more time watching TV and sleeping.
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IMO, this interesting piece stumbles a bit on this point. Elsewhere, Murray's does a great job at making clear that perceptions of Whites are more about class than about race. But here, I think he conflates middle- and working-class sensibilities about the concept of the "work ethic."
In my study of the history of European and American working classes, as well as my experiences working among them (although I'm definitely not bitter, please please please please don't get me started), I've concluded that those who get their hands dirty for a living have a nuanced view of the dignity of work. This perspective makes it possible for many to do their jobs at a "union pace" and still consider themselves hard workers.