Jeremy Rifkin's 1995 book, The End of Work, has recently been reissued, “updated for the 21st century.” Rifkin's prediction of how changing technologies will displace workers and lead to massive global unemployment by the mid-21st century has been repeatedly cited by many academics, policy makers, and members of the public. This essay revisits Rifkin's argument, asking, “How well does it stand a decade later?” The author contends that although The End of Work will continue to generate lively debate, it doesn't provide a defensible sociological guide for understanding work trends and, in fact, probably never should have been viewed as one.
