Hijacked

Author: Elizabeth Anderson

Three-Sentence Summary

• Hijacked by Elizabeth Anderson examines how neoliberalism has distorted the Protestant work ethic to exploit workers and enrich the elite, undermining workers' dignity and autonomy.
• Anderson traces the historical evolution of the work ethic, highlighting its split into progressive and conservative versions, with the latter favoring employer authority and stigmatizing poverty.
• The book proposes reclaiming the original progressive ideals of the work ethic to promote social democracy, worker empowerment, and equitable economic policies.

Extended Summary

Elizabeth Anderson's Hijacked explores the ideological roots of neoliberalism, revealing how it has perverted the seventeenth-century Protestant work ethic to benefit the One Percent at the expense of workers. Neoliberalism is described as an ideology that prioritizes market orderings over state regulation, transferring power from public governance to private employers. The book contrasts two interpretations of the work ethic: a conservative version that demands relentless toil and submission from workers while glorifying capital owners, and a progressive version that advocates worker dignity, self-government, and social democracy. Anderson argues that neoliberal policies degrade workers' autonomy and capabilities while perpetuating class-based power struggles. She calls for renewing the progressive work ethic to empower employees through measures like worker cooperatives and equitable resource distribution.

Key Points

1. Neoliberalism exploits the Protestant work ethic to justify labor commodification and employer dominance.
2. The conservative work ethic stigmatizes poverty while glorifying capital owners as exemplars of virtue.
3. Reclaiming the progressive work ethic can promote social democracy, worker empowerment, and equitable economic systems.

Who Should Read

This book is ideal for readers interested in political economy, labor rights, and critiques of neoliberalism. It appeals to those seeking to understand how historical ideologies shape contemporary economic policies and offers actionable insights for advocates of social democracy.

About the Author

Elizabeth Anderson is a distinguished philosopher specializing in ethics, political philosophy, and feminist theory. She is known for her critical analysis of neoliberalism and its impact on labor rights and social justice.

Further Reading

• Books by Elizabeth Anderson:
  • Private Government: How Employers Rule Our Lives (and Why We Don’t Talk About It)
  • The Imperative of Integration
• Related Books:
  • Neoliberalism and the Moral Economy of Fraud edited by David Whyte and Jörg Wiegratz
  • A Precariat Charter: From Denizens to Citizens by Guy Standing