Podcast Summary

Podcast: Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff
Episode: Precarious Work = Capitalism's Inefficiency
Date: November 1, 2015
Host: Richard D. Wolff
Guest: Dr. Harriet Fraad (mental health counselor, hypnotherapist, economics & psychology commentator)

Episode Overview

This episode of Economic Update focuses on the rise of precarious (insecure, unstable) work under capitalism, exposing how labor flexibility initiatives marketed as "efficiency" are, in practice, deeply inefficient and damaging—socially, psychologically, and economically. Richard D. Wolff guides listeners through recent news and historical context before diving into a compelling interview with Dr. Harriet Fraad, who details how economic precarity has profound impacts on mental health, family life, relationships, and social cohesion.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Economic Events & Historical Context

• Global Trauma and Inequality

  • (04:00) Wolff draws a line between major traumas (9/11, the Middle East refugee crisis) and their roots in economic deprivation and inequality, arguing these crises "are a problem of economics... driven by extreme wealth in some places and extreme deprivation in others."
    • Quote:

      “If you have an economic system that develops extreme wealth in a few places and the opposite, extreme deprivation and poverty in another, you're going to get angry, bitter, resentful people…" – Richard Wolff (06:12)

• Homelessness in Los Angeles

  • (11:10) Nearly 1 million people became homeless in LA over 9 years—most already on public assistance—demonstrating the inadequacy of support systems and the reality behind "economic recovery" narratives.

• Labor Day History & Labor Struggles

  • (14:00) The origins of US Labor Day (vs. May Day globally) are reviewed. The measure was a symbolic gesture following the Pullman strike of 1894, a government crackdown on workers, and an effort to avoid association with global labor activism.

2. Precarious Work: Global Trends

• The Japanese Example
  • (26:00) In 1984, 85% of Japanese workers had lifetime job security—now just 37%. Wolff explains:

    “Moving jobs from secure to precarious is a major assault on working people happening in the United States, Europe, and as you can see, in Japan.”

3. Minimum Wage Debate: Economics of Price vs. Wage

• (27:30) Wolff debunks the argument that raising the minimum wage to $15/hour will simply lead to higher prices, explaining price-setting is competitive and already maximized for profit:
  • Quote:

    “If you raise their wages, they probably can't do any more of [raising prices] than they've already done. And so it's an empty argument. It's meant to fool the public into becoming passive or even oppositional to the efforts of working people to get better wages.” (25:30)

4. Precarity and Its Human Cost

(Interview with Dr. Harriet Fraad, 30:00-57:00)

a) Defining Precarious Work

• (31:20) Precarious (unstable, unpredictable, part-time or temp) work has replaced the previous norm of long-term, stable employment in the US, Japan, and Europe.

b) Daily Life & Family Impacts

• (34:20) Precarity cuts across income levels:

  • Parenting breakdown: Inconsistent schedules devastate parents’ ability to plan child care, destabilizing family structure.

    “If you have children, you can't plan their child care... your children are left alone or in precarious arrangements with strangers they hardly know…” – Dr. Harriet Fraad (34:48)

  • Relationship stress: Relationships fail to thrive when partners cannot plan time together, leading to weakened family bonds and greater social isolation.

• (39:55) Family Values Hypocrisy:

  “The very people that continuously support the needs of business for flexibility in the next breath portray themselves as champions of family values, when the flexibility is an enemy of family and an enemy of relationship.” – Richard Wolff

c) Community and Union Advantages

• (41:20) Unions and stable employment (contracted work hours, benefits) are highly correlated with mobility for children, better family outcomes, and greater sense of agency among workers.

d) Mental Health Crises

• (48:25) Anxiety generated by job insecurity is often more damaging than actual job loss. Rates of suicide, especially among middle-aged men, are rising as work loses its stability and meaning.

  “If several people in an office close to one another are fired, the mental health crisis of the people remaining is worse than those who were fired.” – Dr. Harriet Fraad (48:25) “Nothing is safe in their whole world. Their relationship isn't safe, their home isn't safe.” – Dr. Harriet Fraad (49:10)

• Mass Violence: Loss of job or relationship is often a factor in men turning to violence or self-harm, as precarity erodes traditional sources of identity and stability.

e) Social & Economic Irrationality

• (52:40) The "efficiency" of flexible labor arrangements is a myth—social and personal costs vastly outweigh the marginal profits gained by employers:

  “The cost to society is huge, and the benefit is privately grasped by employers who are a tiny minority... This is an irrational way to organize the economic life of a society.” – Richard Wolff

• Precarity is not only inefficient; it's actively harmful to the general well-being and stability of society.

f) Comparisons to Europe

• (54:05) The US has more precarity, higher murder rates, less comprehensive safety nets, and weaker unions than its European counterparts—leading to more pronounced crises of stability and health.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the origins of Labor Day:

  “It's a little bit like how, having eliminated the Native Americans, we name so many states and cities after the people that we eliminated. There's some guilt in there, isn't there?” – Richard Wolff (15:00)

• Precarity and mental health:

  “The anticipation is worse than the event.” – Dr. Harriet Fraad (48:47)

• On family values versus labor flexibility:

  “They are destroying the family and replacing it with a lack of personal connection or utter loneliness.” – Dr. Harriet Fraad (47:11)

• Efficiency for whom?

  “The parlance that capitalists use is this is efficient, we have to ask for whom... For the person who can't plan their life... Is that efficient?... If it's for us, this is not efficient. If it's for them, the very few who own everything... it's very inefficient.” – Dr. Harriet Fraad (52:54)

Important Timestamps

• 04:00: Link between economic inequality, terrorism, and refugees
• 11:10: LA homelessness epidemic and inadequacies of public assistance
• 14:00-19:00: Labor Day origins, Pullman strike, US labor history
• 26:00: Japanese job insecurity, rise of precarious work
• 27:30: Debunking the minimum wage/price hike argument
• 31:20-ish: Introduction to idea of “precarious work”
• 34:20: Precarity's impact across income levels, effects on daily life
• 41:20: Importance of unions and community for social mobility
• 48:25: Psychological cost of precarity, despair, and violence
• 52:40: Precarity as inefficiency, societal irrationality
• 54:05: Cross-national comparisons; US vs. Europe

Tone & Language

The tone throughout is critical, analytical, but also deeply empathetic. Wolff and Fraad combine data and personal observation to create urgent, accessible commentary on economic structures. They use irony, vivid anecdote, and plain language to drive home the point: economic arrangements affect every dimension of our lives, often in ways hidden or denied by political rhetoric and business interests.

Closing Takeaway

The episode forcefully argues that what is called "flexibility" in modern capitalist labor markets is in fact a system of engineered insecurity that is neither humane nor efficient when societal costs are accounted for. The so-called “efficiency” of precarity is exposed as a myth—the true costs fall on workers, families, and communities, in lost well-being, broken relationships, and often despair. Rebuilding labor protections, strengthening unions, and moving beyond market-driven priorities are vital to restoring both basic security and the social fabric.