An examination of the changes that are likely to occur in work and productivity in the future reveals that, at least before the year 2000, Americans are not likely to see many new jobs created and will probably not be required to alter their skills greatly for existing jobs. It will be difficult to duplicate the sustained productivity attained during the first two decades following World War II. While it is true that high technology is entering the workplace at an ever accelerating pace, it is easy to overstate the impact of these changes. Faced with increasingly better educated and more affluent employees, employers are turning to changing employer-employee relations as a means of satisfying workers' quests for self-esteem. Included among the problems already affecting the workplace, and likely to continue to do so, are the increase in the numbers of displaced workers and declining areas, the underclass and feminization of poverty, and the existence of fewer entry-level jobs as older workers delay retirement. These factors have a number of implications for the insurance industry that industry planners must take into account when developing products and planning promotions for them. (MN)