May 2017
Beginner
192 pages
3h 31m
English
Content preview from White Working Class
Become an O’Reilly member and get unlimited access to this title plus top books and audiobooks from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers, thousands of courses curated by job role, 150+ live events each month,
Start your free trial
| CHAPTER | 11 |
Why Don’t Working-Class Men Just Take “Pink-Collar” Jobs?
MANLY DIGNITY is highly important to working-class men, and they’re not feeling it. Breadwinner status is a big part of this: Many men (of all classes) still measure masculinity by the size of a paycheck.214 Since 1970, professional-elite wages have increased dramatically, while the wages of high-school educated men fell 47%.215 The percentage of men so discouraged they are not looking for work has tripled since the 1960s.216
Look, I wish manliness worked differently. But most men, like most women, seek to fulfill the ideals they’ve grown up with. For many blue-collar men, all they’re asking for is basic human dignity (male varietal). When it comes to masculine dignity, ...