He’s making the case that free trade deconstructed society.
Not soley responsible, but you can make an argument that it played a significant part. Even uneducated males could hold down a decent paying job and maintain a marriage and a family back then. No longer possible.
Though you could just as easily argue that with the social decay the guys in those jobs today would still have bastard children running around and would just be spending that money on drugs or something now.
One of the most stalwart advocates of free trade was Karl Marx:
“Generally speaking, the Protective system in these days is conservative, while the Free Trade system works destructively. It breaks up old nationalities and carries antagonism of proletariat and bourgeoisie to the uttermost point. In a word, the Free Trade system hastens the Social Revolution. In this revolutionary sense alone, gentlemen, I am in favor of Free Trade.”