ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the complexity of past transitions and their assumed linearity by using data from the Adjustment of Young Workers project. It considers the concept of a 'golden age' as a shorthand term to describe the post-war period, which has been characterised by many authors as a time of mass employment and straightforward school to work transitions. The chapter focuses on the 1960s, was a period of excellent employment prospects for young unqualified workers with the wealth of low skilled jobs available and a low rate of unemployment. It suggests that one characteristic of independence or self-responsibility would be the ability of the young people to make decisions about their own futures and resolve any difficulties that arose in work or life. Jones has argued that historically, young workers made the transition to domestic independence soon after beginning full time paid work, however, domestic or housing transitions were not a feature of the young workers' lives.
