2023 | What Should Work Ethic Mean for Us Today?

The work ethic was invented by Puritans 400 years ago.  From the start, it contained contradictory ideas:  one rationalizing the subjection of workers to drudgery for profit; the other honoring workers for advancing human welfare and calling for their dignified and equitable treatment.  Both ideas were developed over time, leaving a contradictory legacy for us today.  I show how the neglected second work ethic tradition can be revived and updated for 21st-century American workers.

Elizabeth Anderson is Max Shaye Professor of Public Philosophy at University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. She has taught at UM since 1987, specializing in moral and political philosophy, especially on democratic theory, egalitarianism and its history, and the ethics of work. She is a MacArthur Fellow and designed the Philosophy, Politics, and Economics Program at University of Michigan.

Statement:

OLLI strongly encourages all attendees at its WCC lectures to keep themselves safe and mitigate the spread of COVID-19 by social distancing wherever possible and wearing a mask.  In the case of social distancing, maintain at least one seat of spacing between yourself or your family/social bubble and others.