James Suzman

A revolutionary new history of humankind through the prism of work, from the origins of life on Earth to our ever-more automated present 'A fascinating exploration that challenges our basic assumptions of what work means' Yuval Noah Harari 'One of those few books that will turn your customary ways of thinking upside down' Susan Cain The work we do brings us meaning, moulds our values, determines our social status and dictates how we spend most of our time. But this wasn't always the case: for 95% of our species' history, work held a radically different importance. How, then, did work become the central organisational principle of our societies? How did it transform our bodies, our environments, our views on equality and our sense of time? And why, in a time of material abundance, are we working more than ever before?

A History of how We Spend Our Time

Work

Sagar Rathna Sabapathy

The rise and rise of the serv1ce sector may be a testa- ment to our collective creativity when it comes to inventing new jobs to accommodate those ejected from the produc- tion lines in the ever more automated and efficient manu- facturing sector. But we clearly aren't that clever when it comes to creating (or rewarding) jobs people are likely to find meaningful or fulfilling. Even more importantly, it is now far from certain whether or not the service sector will be able to accommodate all of those whose work will be determined superfluous to requirements by the next tide of automation, whose waves are already licking against the shores of this last refuge of working men and women in the post-industrial age.

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