What Happens if Work Goes Away?

Jeremy Rifkin argues that as we push further into the Information Age fewer and fewer workers will be needed to produce our goods and services. Rifkin predicts that the era of near workerless factories and virtual corporations looms on the horizon. As one wag commentator put it: “The factory of the future will be staffed by only two living things, a man and a dog. The man’s job will be to feed the dog. The dog’s job will be to keep the man from touching any of the machines!” In a world that is phasing out mass employment, asks Rifkin, how do we find alternate ways for individuals to earn a living, find meaningful and creative outlets for expressions and establish their own sense of self-worth and identity? In other words, in the absence of work, how will we come to define ourselves? What will we do with ourselves? How will we stay sane?