Look closely at the numbers in our new analysis of the “digitalization” of the labor market and you see that the greatest change is occurring not at the top of the skills distribution, but at the bottom and middle.
Sure, the creation of many new jobs for highly skilled software developers and computer systems analysts is very apparent.
But even more striking are the dramatic changes now convulsing mid- and lower-skill occupations. Since 2002, the digital scores of middle-tier jobs like those of nurses and automotive service technicians have soared from the high-30s to the mid-50s on our 100-point digitalization scale even as lower-skilled workers like home health aides and welders have seen the digital skills demanded by their jobs surge from a digital score of 3 to 23 in each case.
These trends are striking and welcome. This explosion of upskilling in the lower half of the skills distribution reflects the critical dynamic of “catch-up” and potentially improved economic inclusivity. Here we see that the tech revolution that is transforming the world of work doesn’t just entail the exploits of PhD. artificial intelligence experts and data scientists, but also now encompasses nitty-gritty tech adoption in unglamorous but widespread offices, stores, doctor’s offices, and garages. As such, the digitalization of the sprawling bulk of the labor market conveys an encouraging picture of the nation’s economy, with the top to bottom adoption of productivity-enhancing technologies and processes, contributing to the prospect of heightened productivity and prosperity nationwide.
Chosen excerpts by Job Market Monitor. Read the whole story at The most radical digital upskilling is now occurring in middle- and lower-level jobs
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