America's jobs problem
May. 31st, 2016 10:20 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
timeletsDuring the next couple of generations, young Americans (and their parents) will have to adjust to new job market conditions. Both white collar and blue collar employment models are going to shrink.
On the white collar side, kids would have to study harder and make early carrier decisions. Since college education prices are becoming barely affordable for the middle class, the "warehousing" option when one stays undeclared for two years no longer makes economic sense. Thus, doing better in high school and choosing a carrier path early, e.g. through a community college, would be a smart choice. Competition for high-paying jobs will get tougher too because of the new workplace interaction efficiencies. Smart kids would have to become a lot more entrepreneurial than the previous generation, but venture capital, given the aging population, and the learning environment may not catch up fast enough.
On the blue collar side, kids would have to contend with increasing workplace automation and low wages in the services sector. Competition for factory jobs is going to intensify. Unless someone invents a way to scale service businesses, young people might get stuck in low-paying jobs for years. Although AI is clearly overhyped now, the technology's long-term impact on blue collar professions will be significant. We are entering a period when new technology doesn't envision job growth. Many people feel this already and it creates anxiety among the voters.
Unfortunately, neither of the current presidential candidates has any idea of how to deal with the situation. They offer solutions that used to work in the past, but will be inefficient in dealing with the new problem set.
On the white collar side, kids would have to study harder and make early carrier decisions. Since college education prices are becoming barely affordable for the middle class, the "warehousing" option when one stays undeclared for two years no longer makes economic sense. Thus, doing better in high school and choosing a carrier path early, e.g. through a community college, would be a smart choice. Competition for high-paying jobs will get tougher too because of the new workplace interaction efficiencies. Smart kids would have to become a lot more entrepreneurial than the previous generation, but venture capital, given the aging population, and the learning environment may not catch up fast enough.
On the blue collar side, kids would have to contend with increasing workplace automation and low wages in the services sector. Competition for factory jobs is going to intensify. Unless someone invents a way to scale service businesses, young people might get stuck in low-paying jobs for years. Although AI is clearly overhyped now, the technology's long-term impact on blue collar professions will be significant. We are entering a period when new technology doesn't envision job growth. Many people feel this already and it creates anxiety among the voters.
Unfortunately, neither of the current presidential candidates has any idea of how to deal with the situation. They offer solutions that used to work in the past, but will be inefficient in dealing with the new problem set.
