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Eric Dale is Fired
A Reflection on Job Security from the Golden Age of Capitalism to Modern-Day Layoffs
The Golden Age of Capitalism
The golden age of capitalism, spanning 30 years from the post-World War II era until the early 1970s, is a period in US and European history characterized by strong employment security.
Marked by long-term employment with benefits, job stability, and steadily rising wages each year, there was widespread economic confidence and social mobility.
The golden age was a time when the wife was a homemaker, the man was the breadwinner, and his salary was sufficient to support a family, maintain a good standard of living, attain home ownership, a car, and provide for retirement.
There are numerous accounts of people joining large stable companies, such as Ford in the USA, or Siemens in Germany, during those golden years, and retiring 35 years later from the same company.
At that time, IBM had a “no-fire” policy, reflecting its corporate commitment to job security and lifetime employment of its white-collar workers.
Sadly, those days are long gone.
