Technology's job impact: From handweavers' Golden Age to Luddism

emollick · x · 2026-08-20

The impact of technology on jobs evolves over time. During the First Industrial Revolution, handweaving experienced a 20-year "Golden Age" because early machines made yarn cheaper, driving up demand for weavers. This changed with the arrival of the powerloom, which displaced handweavers and made them the vanguard of the Luddite movement.

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