As we enter the first years of the twenty-first century it has become com¬monplace to hear talk once again about a "new economy," "greater productiv¬ity," and the "changing nature of work." This new economy was-heralded by an unprecedented period of economic growth and prosperity fueled, in part, by increased worker productivity and technological advancements. The changing nature of work refers to movements away from an industrial model of long-term employment toward an economy with a smaller workforce and greater job volatility and mobility. The movement is stereotypically captured in such images as a middle-aged assembly line factory worker being replaced by a young webpage designer. Of course, it is easy to over-generalize such claims. While true for many people in, and parts of, Western developed economies, neither economic prosperity nor job mobility is true for all workers in these societies. It certainly is not true for most workers throughout the world for whom agricultural work remains the primary type of work done.