Most jobs are not lost, they merely end up elsewhere

The structure of the economy – as represented by the relative sizes of the various industry sectors – is always changing. Normally the rate of change is so slow we don’t notice it. At present, however, the pace of change is much quicker than usual.

These pressures are coming from outside Australia. Many are the consequence of the rapid transition of various populous economies from developing to developed. Some of these ”emerging” economies are in South America; most are in Asia.

One big consequence of this development is that much of the manufacturing undertaken in the world is moving from the developed to the emerging economies, where labour is more abundant and thus cheaper. This is hitting manufacturing in all the developed economies, not just us. (They’re not enjoying it, either.) …

via Most jobs are not lost, they merely end up elsewhere.