Fewer American Men Want To Work

Jay Weber Show transcript 5-7-24 7:42am

This is from Newsweek: a rising number of American men don’t want to work.

Why is that do you think?

Here’s the basic story from Newsweek

For many, it's not an issue of not being able to find a job. They have simply opted out altogether. The Bureau of Labor Statistics found only 89 percent of working age men have a job or are actively looking for work. In 1950, that number was at 97 percent.

While the early 1950s saw around 96 percent of working age American men between the ages of 25 and 54 working full or part-time jobs, that proportion has now moved to just 86 percent, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

And as fewer men financially support themselves, there are long-reaching economic and societal implications, experts say.

See? That’s the crap that didn’t matter for 99 percent of human history-that our soft, woke culture now puts a premium on.

And I’m serious.

Why are today’s young men more reluctant to work than earlier generations?

I’d attribute most of it to- cultural shifts in which-in every past generation- it was made clear to boys what the expectation was for them in life-and it was to ‘get a job’. It was to be self-sufficient initially...and eventually be able to be the provider for a family, save, buy a house, start a business, whatever.

The simple expectation was you were going to work. This was what your purpose in life was going to be- and whether or not you actually -liked?-the job you were going to work at- wasn’t even really a primary question. Was it?

Older guys can back me up on this.

It was great if you could find work that paid well that you also enjoyed-but the cultural and familial expectations was not: look around and find a job that pays well that you enjoy. 

That might be what it is ‘now’ given how prosperous and pampered Americans have become...but...in generations past....

The exception was-at a young age: go out and get a job. Even if you don’t enjoy it, because you have to contribute to the family finances.

And then-work yourself up from there. Change jobs if you really want to-and if that new job is something you like more that is at least as stable as the old one-

Because a regular paycheck was more important than a ‘bigger’ paycheck. 

Or-if you saved up enough money to start your own business and be your own boss-good for you-

But-

The expectation -until about generation x or y-

Was never: take your time. Dabble. Look around in college or after college...and see what you might want to do.

That’s what it is now. Not for every male growing up in America-but for most of them. 

It also helps that the government benefits for welfare recipients and freeloaders have never been higher- and the stigma of being on the government dole has never been lower.

That also makes it easier for a certain brand of today’s lazy turd of a kid...to simply decide he’s not going to work...or he’s only going to work part-time and then go on food stamps.

story credit: Newsweek
photo credit: Getty Images