The worker shortage caused by shrinking populations is dramatically changing the labor space:
Japan has taken drastic steps toward reversing its low birth rate. Starting in the 1990s, the government required companies to offer generous parental leave, added subsidies for day care, and started offering cash payments to parents. Earlier this year, the Tokyo government also launched its own dating app to help single people find a partner and marry.
Compare this to the late 1970s and early 1980s in the U.S. where the incoming new, young worker cohort was large. If employers did not like your performance, they just hired someone else because labor became plentiful. The growing “need” for a college degree, then, was it was being used as a “filter” on all the applicants.
More that here: How to show you know nothing of history without saying you know nothing of history – Social Panic
On the flip side, AI and automation are expanding rapidly. The effect this will have on future employment options is not yet well understood. On one hand, these tools may help address the looming labor shortage. On the other hand, many jobs may become obsolete or at least so much more efficient (by using AI assistance) that fewer workers are required.
