You’ve probably heard many times that we live in an increasingly postindustrial, globalized, and/or transnational society and economy. But what exactly does that mean or more specifically, how does that affect the typical American worker. The Christian Science Monitor has a look at this question as they examine the effects of today’s contemporary economy on workers at the top and at the bottom of the labor market:

Experts say the two ends of the labor market are in fact the Janus faces of the same economic force. A higher level of economic efficiency is playing differently at the furthest points of the labor spectrum. With the help of improved technology, employers have grown adept at coaxing the most from their workers by monitoring productivity, basing pay on performance, and keeping the BlackBerry crowd connected to the workplace around the clock. The forces of globalization and technology, however, have made it harder for many workers with less education to find good jobs. . . .

Indeed, some economic research suggests that people have as much leisure time as ever. But millions of Americans are clearly feeling the strains of an economy that puts a premium on worker productivity. One symptom: The regular pay raise is giving way to more compensation in the form of bonuses and other merit-linked rewards. “Pay for performance now dominates how people are paid,” says Mr. Challenger, the labor expert. There’s more weeding out of people who don’t work as hard, he says, as companies focus on measuring ability “every which way.”

In sum, globalization has made workers at the bottom much more vulnerable to layoffs due to jobs being moved overseas. Many who are low-skilled find it increasingly difficult to pull themselves out of poverty or near-poverty due to such cutthroat global economic conditions. On the other hand, for workers at the top, globalization and international competitiveness have meant that their companies are increasingly basing their pay not on set salaries but on performance bonuses, all the while keeping closer tabs on their productivity.

Is there a moral to this story? Does it imply that capitalism and globalization are good or bad? In this case, I’m not really sure, except to say that this is probably how it’s going to be for the foreseeable future. In other words, we’ve made our bed, so now it’s time to sleep in it.