A Tale of Two Decades: Changes in Work and Family in Massachusetts
June 2002
As the Commonwealth's economic base has changed, so too has its workforce and family structures. This study describes the effects of two decades of boom and bust on workers and families, analyzing winners and losers in a new state economy. The study finds that the Massachusetts Miracle of the 1980s generated considerably more gains for a wider variety of people and families than the new economy of the 1990s. The authors find that while most workers saw their own and their families' earnings improve over the 20-year period, the cost for this prosperity has been more work hours and more people, especially mothers, working in every family.
