The American Precariat: U.S. Capitalism in Comparative Perspective

Abstract

The address situates the rise of “gig” work in the context of a much longer-term trend toward more precarious forms of employment. It explores the forces that are driving these developments and discusses the problems they pose at both the individual level and the national level. By situating the United States in a comparative perspective, it identifies the structural factors that exacerbate the problem of precarity and intensify its effects in the American political economy.

Comparing Capitalisms: Debates, Controversies and Future Directions

“…We focus on the dynamics of individual capitalist systems as well as capitalism per se in developed economies. We have stopped short of conducting a full systematic review, but have, nevertheless, attempted to do justice to the CC literature since 2007/2008; during this period a re-assessment of capitalism has taken place (Morgan, 2016; Streeck, 2016; Thelen, 2019). We seek to capture how themes within three strands of the CC literature have evolved since the end of the ‘Great Moderation’, which lasted from approximately 1989 until 2007/2008 (Coates, 2015).…”

“…Some HI literature focuses on Germany and its experience leading up to, during, and after the so-called Hartz reforms. These reforms changed labour-market and social-welfare policies significantly, and they followed recommendations by the Committee for Modern Services in the When research focuses on other countries, the analysis often concentrates on how relevant collective actors cannot prevent the weakening of unions and collective wage bargaining, leading to increases in income inequality (Amable, 2017;Baccaro and Howell, 2017;Thelen, 2019). There has been a tendency for historical institutionalists to see change as primarily a political process, led by defectors from a particular institutional order who would gain materially from the changes they propose (Amable, 2017;Crouch, 2016;Kinderman, 2017).…”

“…When research focuses on other countries, the analysis often concentrates on how relevant collective actors cannot prevent the weakening of unions and collective wage bargaining, leading to increases in income inequality (Amable, 2017; Baccaro and Howell, 2017; Thelen, 2019). There has been a tendency for historical institutionalists to see change as primarily a political process, led by defectors from a particular institutional order who would gain materially from the changes they propose (Amable, 2017; Crouch, 2016; Kinderman, 2017).…”

The Impact of Neoliberalism on Civil Society and Nonprofit Advocacy

“…Standing notes that the precariat is the first generation to systematically lose rights of citizenship in the sense that they lack non-wage benefits: social insurance, health care, overtime rules, unemployment benefits, sick leave, or minimum wage (2016) and they have "minimal trust relationships with capital or the state" (Standing 2014, p. 9). This trend has swept across all industrialized economies but it is particularly pronounced in the US because European social welfare benefits and after tax income have a greater redistributive effect (Hacker, Mettler, and Pinderhughes 2005); they enjoy more government protection of job benefits and health care (Thelan 2019;Hacker, Mettler, and Pinderhughes 2005). By contrast, the US ranks 19th among 21 OECD nations for highest poverty rates among individuals living in households where at least one worker is employed (Thelan 2019, p. 17); the US has the largest low wage sector as a percentage of total workforce based on 2017 data, and the least amount of job benefits or protection for workers among OECD nations (Thelan 2019).…”

“…This trend has swept across all industrialized economies but it is particularly pronounced in the US because European social welfare benefits and after tax income have a greater redistributive effect (Hacker, Mettler, and Pinderhughes 2005); they enjoy more government protection of job benefits and health care (Thelan 2019;Hacker, Mettler, and Pinderhughes 2005). By contrast, the US ranks 19th among 21 OECD nations for highest poverty rates among individuals living in households where at least one worker is employed (Thelan 2019, p. 17); the US has the largest low wage sector as a percentage of total workforce based on 2017 data, and the least amount of job benefits or protection for workers among OECD nations (Thelan 2019). Moreover, there has been a progressive and substantial decline in the real value of social welfare benefits in the US since the 1980s, including: student loans for lower income students (Pell Grants dropped from covering 80-40% of college expenses at a state institution between 1975 and 1999 [Hacker, Mettler, and Pinderhughes 2005, p. 174]).…”