A lot of the jobs then were physical labor intensive.
Yes. A lot of these types of jobs are better paid now, yet there aren't the young people to fill them.
The work environment now is more complex. A lot of work need brain power.
Have you considered how many people can do these jobs? Education might have gone up, but IQ is still what it is. The people who are likely struggling in the jobs and burning out, might not be the most suited for the jobs, right?
Back then once you clock out, everything is done.
But, this hasn't been the case for 30 years. I don't think I have been able to "clock out" in the last twenty. The people who are burning out now would have been 5 years old at the time. I think there are more issues ongoing than this, because even though people talk about not being able to switch off, that is not actually the case with the majority of companies and roles. Maybe they need better time management skills and they definitely need better understanding.
While it is admirable, it is also preventing those promising younger generation from being promoted.
At least in Finland, they are begging older people not to retire, because they don't have enough young people coming through. In some cases, they are bringing people out of retirement to take care of things, including some coding jobs, weirdly.
Your daily life becomes a cycle of going to work, and sleeping.
Do you think this was different 40 or 50 years ago?
The conditions are what they are and the attitude that a lot of the young are taking, isn't going to work in their favor. They are cutting themselves off to opportunity and growth.