Kirsty hears from women who were moving into a male dominated workforce and sees how the optimistic dreams of the post-war years were undermined by poor management and bickering workers.
In the second of this series on the history of work, Kirsty Young looks at the years in which the post-war baby boom generation joined the workforce, from the buoyant optimism of the 60s to the union versus management conflicts of the 70s.
Kirsty highlights the emergence of a new self-employed and self-starting class eager to embrace Margaret Thatcher's message of self-reliance and the pursuit of wealth. For many people this meant exploring new job opportunities and working in new kinds of jobs.
In the final episode of the series, Kirsty Young looks at how work has changed from the late 90s to the present. Using comedy, drama and archive from the period, she examines how work has crept into the very centre of our lives. Kirsty confronts her own troubles with her work/life balance and hears from ordinary people trying to cope with the relentless demands of 21st-century work. She also explores the curious and often hilarious attempts by managers to make us adopt corporate values by being not just our bosses but also our mates.