The grim economic outlook for working-class men

In a recent National Journal article , Jonathan Rauch discussed the "no good, very bad outlook for the working-class American man." While the American economy is still strong, Rauch says, a fundamental problem remains: millions of workers, especially less-educated males, are leaving the workforce in record numbers.

"This is a fundamental problem," said Robert J. Shapiro, founder and chairman of Sonecon in the National Journal. "This is America's largest economic challenge. People can no longer depend on rising wages and salaries when the economy expands."

Shapiro will join The Daily Circuit Thursday, Dec. 20 to discuss the state of working class jobs.

Lawrence Mishel, president of the Economic Policy Institute, will also join the discussion.

"This is something that has been happening and building for years and is now really rooted in the economy, and it's vicious," he said in the National Journal. "There's a remarkable disconnect. The problem isn't a lack of the economy producing sufficient income to make everybody's living standards improve--it's that the economy is structured so that the majority don't benefit."

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