In the ongoing battle to restore America to its past glory, the issue of jobs is a central concern. Some claim recovery will only come when the factors that are taking away American jobs—illegal immigrants, cheap imports and globalization—are eliminated.
However, such arguments do not tell the whole story. Having jobs assumes people want to work. This is not the case today.
Worker participation in the labor market has just reached its lowest level since the COVID period, with about 59 percent now employed. A record 105 million Americans are not in the labor force (NILF). This fact is hurting the nation’s economy.
Those Who Are Not Working
Not all these non-workers are worrisome. Half of this number can be attributed to retirees, while another 16 to 18 percent are full-time students aged 16 or older. These have always been legitimate reasons for staying out of the workforce.
What is worrisome is the rest of this NILF demographic. Many able-bodied Americans are not working because they do not want to work. They are not looking for jobs and would not accept one if offered.
These able-bodied non-workers now number over 10.5 million men and women. This mysterious idle legion is an inactive and passive force that weighs heavily upon the nation.
They are joined by 23.3 million more who do not work due to some disability. While many receive needed benefits, others enter one or more programs that allow them to drop out of the labor market.
Many experts question what The New York Post calls the “sprawling, disconnected archipelago of disability programs,” with many blind spots that “allow many to fall through the cracks.” These abuse the programs and their purpose.
A Worsening Situation
In 2016, labor economist Nicholas Eberstadt wrote America’s Invisible Crisis: Men Without Work, a book that describes this dilemma. Ten years later, he finds the situation has not improved.
Indeed, a decade ago, it was largely men who made up this idle legion of NILF dropouts. Today, he claims “there is a growing group of dropout women [3.5 million] who are neither working nor looking for work, have no children under the same roof with them, and no husband present.”
This shift to idleness indicates a massive change in the work ethic that made America great and energetic. Without an eagerness to work, there is no guarantee that jobs recovered from overseas would find willing workers to fill them.
A Moral Crisis
This is not only an economic crisis; above all, it is a moral crisis. There really is no other way to describe it. Those who should be breadwinners do not want to appear under any job statistics. Those who should be dependable are now listed as dependent. A culture of industriousness has been replaced with a system that encourages sloth and idleness.
Most of these voluntary non-workers result from the breakdown of the family and society. It surprises no one that so many of these men and women without work are uneducated and unmarried. Many have shirked the responsibility of family life and live lives of self-absorbed gratification. In his book, Eberstadt claims they lack “the motivations, aspirations, priorities, values, and other intangibles that do so much to explain real-world human achievements.”
The Infantilization of the Dropouts
“These are the healthiest, best educated Americans that have ever lived on the planet,” Eberstadt observes. However, they are not contributing to society, civically engaged or socially active.
These non-workers are not homeless, living on the street. For the most part, they live normal lives that are hardly rich but not necessarily poor. They can live reasonably comfortable lives due to the support of accommodating spouses, friends, aging parents or government welfare programs. With such support, there really is no motivation to look for jobs.
Since they do not occupy their time with work, many waste their hours on screens, video games and entertainment. They do not endeavor to improve themselves or develop skills. Such idleness creates ideal conditions for crime, drugs and vices. Indeed, Eberstadt does not hesitate to label such activities as the “infantilization” of the dropouts.
The Need to Grow Up
What America is witnessing is the appalling waste of human potential. These are people who do not want to be what they should be. They show little desire to commit themselves to stable, permanent relationships and to forming families. They do not want to be contributing citizens by getting involved in a community.
Thus, one thing is clear. The tragedy of the situation will not be solved by mere economic growth. Promising jobs to those who do not want to work will not solve the problem. The system that facilitates these non-workers must be dismantled. However, real change will only happen when these infantilized Americans grow up.
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