While the U.S. economy seems to have made a bit of a rebound, the jobs that are available today are not the same kinds of jobs that were lost during the Great Recession which began in late 2008.
In a recent article discussing a newly released report, “America’s Divided Recovery: College Haves and Have-Nots”, the authors say that most of the jobs that were created, some 8.4 million, went to workers with a bachelor’s degree or higher. The report also said that workers with a high school diploma or less only grew by 80,000 jobs in the economic recovery.
This year, workers with a bachelor’s degree or higher are a larger proportion of the workforce (36%) than those with a high school diploma or less (34%) for the first time in our nation’s history. The remaining 30% of workers make up the remainder of those who are employed in middle-skill occupations
No longer do manufacturing jobs make up nearly half of the workforce as they did in 1947. Today, that number has fallen to a mere 19%.
College applicants with a BA or higher now make up 57% of all wages in the U.S. workforce. The largest gains were seen in consulting, management and business services. The problem is that the country is becoming polarized between those who have a college education and those who don’t. That leaves fewer workers with a clear pathway to the middle class.
You can download a copy of the full report here.
Today’s trend toward job applicants who have higher education really began at the start of the Great Recession. Higher education often can mean that the person you hire will more likely have the technical skills necessary in order to better do the job using the latest technology and techniques on the job.
Human resource management is all about matching the right people who have the right skillset and talent to the right job. NetPEO can help your organization with your human resource needs. We offer a complete range of services including payroll, employee benefits management, liability management, brokerage services, and employee leasing.
Contact NetPEO today to schedule a free assessment. Learn why so many companies entrust all of their employee needs to us.