The last time the Financial Times addressed the future of work in as comprehensive a fashion as we are doing here was in 1986. The resulting product then, later turned into a book called In Search of Work, makes fascinating reading today.
We predicted several trends correctly, including employers’ increased use of flexible, contract workers. We also focused on worries that are still with us today, such as the ageing of developed countries’ populations. But it is interesting, too, to see what has changed since 1986 and what we failed to foresee.
