> a society that more or less forces people to make work their only focus

Modern American society really doesn't force anyone to do this. Targeting work-life balance requires making trade-offs. But in a country where the median wage is around $45k, some significant fraction of half of Americans can dial down their work if they reduce lifestyle and consumption.

Not when basics like rent, food, and healthcare eat up the majority of that 45k

There's only so much you can reduce your lifestyle before you're literally just living to work anyways