What do you think about the decline of the working class?

Question

In the last quarter of the century, the working class have gone from being 40% of the population to 18%.

What are your thoughts on this? Are we all becoming middle class, or do we need a re-evaluation of what it means to be working class in a de-industrialised world? Elaborate as much as you like :-)

Answer 1

..the decline of the working class is the fault of sexist radicals.. hardcore feminism has polluted the mind of the working class female.. making her a man-hating, work-selective, overly-arrogant, and domineering slob.

and there's just too many of them.. they turn the tide with a single unified move.. (if only they can learn to be more responsible..)

Answer 2

It used to be that the working class was seen as the backbone of society, honest labourers and tradesmen whose work was to be trusted. This disapeared with Maggie Thatchers war on the workers who she labelled "the enemy within"

She made a systematic attack on the working class and their communities, labelling them "moaning minnies" when they complained about having no jobs or food while she gave her rich friend's tax concessions and a piece of the welfare state to  exploit. Now any study of Y! answers will come up with lots of questions about "workshy dole scrounging chav's" and "council estate scumbag thugs"  And they call it progress.

Answer 3

It is big business caring more about money than the livelihood of people. I think it is sad and it will only get worse. The middle/working class is shrinking. There is polarity in the social classes. A majority of the people are either rich or poor.

Answer 4

Those 18% are probably doing more work in the first two or three hours of the day than most do in an entire week, and making much less.

What I have observed: no one cares about their concerns, no one listens to them. Working class (poor) people don't have an advocacy group like apparently everyone else does.

No wonder we are in a recession, people are fed-up. Sometimes, while entertaining more sinister thoughts, I'd like to see the whole thing coming crashing down, even if it meant my demise.

EDIT:

Ryan said it more concisely.

Answer 5

The working class has not declined, it has merely changed. Tell me that the people trudging to offices every day are not the working class, they're not the owning class except for the pretence of house owning (a 30-40 year death sentence).

The idea that we are "all middle class now" is a false notion. Most of China is traditional working class as is most of Africa.

Putting on a collar and tie to do boring work, which accumulates no wealth, changes nothing.

Answer 6

Read....the book "usurper".......it`ll answer your question .....a real eye opener......you can find it if you look....wink wink

Answer 7

working class jobs are far and few between, there are few mines, or steel factories and other working class jobs compared to 60 years ago...now the focus is on middle class jobs such as IT

the main problem is that people arnt being trained to adapt to the middle class jobs of today for example IT there are millions of working class adults that struggle to turn a PC on let alone being able to use excel or powerpoint....more funding needs to be done to promote IT to the older generations to help them compete with us young ones and by doing so will increase thier skill sets and give them a better chance at getting most jobs thus reducing jobless people

Answer 8

Middle class is working class.  If a person isn't rich than they have to work.  I think we have far less industrial labor.  That is a good thing and a bad thing all in one.  On the one hand it means western countries are moving more to white collar service oriented jobs which means that a lot of people are getting the education that they need in order to keep from literally breaking their backs.  On the other hand anyone without a degree will eventually be left cold due to the decline in manufacturing jobs.

Answer 9

I don't believe the number has changed, only the definition. I'm sure there are plenty of people who fancy themselves "middle class" who should be considered working class.