Nicholas Eberstadt > Quotes

“OVER THE PAST two generations, America has suffered a quiet catastrophe. That catastrophe is the collapse of work—for men. In the half century between 1965 and 2015, work rates for the American male spiraled relentlessly downward, and an ominous migration commenced: a “flight from work,” in which ever-growing numbers of working-age men exited the labor force altogether.”
― Nicholas Eberstadt, Men Without Work: America's Invisible Crisis

“Since the end of the twentieth century, the United States has witnessed an ominous and growing divergence among three trends that should ordinarily move together: wealth, output, and employment.”
― Nicholas Eberstadt, Men without Work: Post-Pandemic Edition

“OVER THE PAST two generations, America has suffered a quiet catastrophe. That catastrophe is the collapse of work—for men.”
― Nicholas Eberstadt, Men without Work: Post-Pandemic Edition

“It is high time for American citizens and policymakers to recognize the American male’s postwar flight from work for what it is: a grave social ill. It is imperative for the future health of our nation that we make a determined and sustained commitment to bringing these detached men back—back into the workplace, back into their families, back into our civil society. I do not propose here to offer a comprehensive program to accomplish this great goal. This is not a “how to” book. America’s “men without work” problem is immense and complex and has been gathering fully for two generations. Reversing it will surely require action on many different fronts—and certainly not just governmental action. It will also require suggestions and strategies from voices across the political spectrum; only a broad and inclusive approach will develop and sustain the consensus needed to turn this tide. In”
― Nicholas Eberstadt, Men Without Work: America's Invisible Crisis

“How big is the “men without work” problem today? Consider a single fact: in 2015, the work rate (or employment-to-population ratio) for American males ages twenty-five–to–fifty-four was slightly lower than it had been in 1940, which was at the tail end of the Great Depression.”
― Nicholas Eberstadt, Men without Work: Post-Pandemic Edition