As a result of changes in the nature of employment
and the labour market, in particular the
‘feminisation’ of employment (shift towards a more
service-oriented economy) and the loss of jobs
requiring heavy manual labour, men in lower socioeconomic
groups now have less access to jobs that
allow for the expression of working-class
masculinity, and have thus lost a source of
masculine identity and ‘pride’. Working class men
may struggle to ‘reconstruct’ their identity to fit the
changing labour market situation. They may not
take up jobs that do become available within the
service economy because these conflict with their
working class masculine identity.