San Antonio College Library

Traces the development of the American work ethic, the dedication to hard work and self-denial that marked America's rise as an economic power, and uncovers the many causes of its disapppearance in the late twentieth century.

Illusions of Opportunity presents the first comprehensive measure of ideal against reality, calculating exactly how much opportunity is available relative to the number of American households reliant on it. Even thirty years ago, this measure reveals, opportunity in America was already drying up - to the point that, today, we have a deficit of sixteen million adequate jobs, and nearly a quarter of American families can't find the work they need to...

"Forging America illuminates the fate of labor in an era when industry, manhood, and independence began to take on new and highly charged meanings. John Bezis-Selfa argues that the iron industry, with its early concentration of capital and labor, reveals the close links between industrial and political revolution. Through means ranging from religious exhortation to force, ironmasters encouraged or compelled workers - free, indentured, and enslaved...

"Millions of Americans are beginning to work and live the way creative people like artists and scientists always have - and as a result our values and tastes, our personal relationships, our choices of where to live, and even our sense and use of time, are changing. Leading the shift are the nearly 38 million Americans in many diverse fields who create for a living - the Creative Class. The first person to name this revolution was renowned urban studies...

Comparison of work attitudes in Japan, UK and USA - examines employees attitudes and management attitudes to absenteeism, work performance, paid leave, etc.; discusses quality circles, the effect of wage payment system, especially measured daywork, cultural factors and social norms; assesses Motivation and job satisfaction; considers young workers attitudes. Graphs, references.