The Dignity of Labour

Jon Cruddas is the Labour Member of Parliament for Dagenham and Rainham.

'This book seeks to re-establish Labour as the party of work. It is an ambitious and essential read for anyone interested in how our movement can rebuild.'
Keir Starmer, Leader of the Labour Party
 
'The Dignity of Labour is an angry book: an exasperated cri de coeur from a politician who believes his party risks losing not only more elections, but also its grip on [its] historic mission'
The Observer
 
'a trenchant reassertion of the centrality of work in the politics of the common good'
The Guardian
 
'a call to arms for a coherent philosophy with which to define the [Labour Party]--something desperately needed by its current leader Keir Starmer'
Prospect
 
'Timely [and] engaging'
New Statesman
 
'Ranging brilliantly across economics, ethics, politics, even film, this humane and hopeful book points the way to a new politics of the common good. It is essential reading for everyone who cares about repairing our civic life.'
Michael Sandel, author of The Tyranny of Merit: What's Become of the Common Good?
 
'In this short book Jon Cruddas upends the assumptions of the modern left and offers a route back to relevance. Anchored in the moving story of loss, humiliation and resilience in Dagenham, he revives an exiled political tradition to restore the prospect of dignity and hope. In a time when we've briefly remembered the value of work, Cruddas reminds us there is nothing inevitable about the future. Surely among the most important political works of the coming decade, The Dignity of Labour offers the first, genuinely original answer to the question we are frequently asked: what is Labour for?'
Lisa Nandy MP, Shadow Foreign Secretary
 
'Humane, intelligent and accessible. This wonderful book shows that dignity for workers must be at the heart of the post-Covid economy - and shape the future of work itself. A must-read for everyone on the left - and far beyond.'
Frances O'Grady, General Secretary of the Trades