Today, only one worker in five labors in manufacturing compared with one in three 20 years ago. Restructuring has brought strong growth, rising real incomes and the third highest level of foreign investment after the U.S. and China. Labor markets are far more flexible than in other EU nations. But there has been a fundamental change in working patterns. Losing a job in Britain can be more traumatic than in other EU countries because, in general, severance payments are much lower, and because state unemployment benefits are barely adequate to house, feed and heat a family.
Evidence suggests that the gap between haves and have-nots has increased.
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