Jobs for the Future

Report Outline
Labour Market In Changing Society
Evolution of Today's Job Structure
Future Changes in Employment Picture
Special Focus

Labour Market In Changing Society

Coming Career Problems For Nation's Youth

Young people entering the world of work in the next decade will have had, on the average if present trends continue, a sharply increased number of years of education. And they will expect to obtain jobs which provide not only security and status but also stimulation, outlets for creativity, and opportunities for frequent advancement. The aspirations of the restless new generation will confront society with the task of trying to ensure sufficient job openings despite the economy's ability to get more work done with fewer workers; and there will be need to try also to provide the new labor-force entrants with an exciting atmosphere in which to work.

Along with extended education for the many, the 1970s will see continuance, if not intensification, of the school dropout problem in the inner city. Dropouts will have a particularly hard time because youths under 18 or 20 years of age are virtually excluded from meaningful employment in a country which expects young people to remain in school. It will therefore be important to find new ways to encourage dropouts to take special training in line with their capacities and with the requirements of employers.

In the context of rapid technological and social changes in the world of work, the question often is asked, For what should we be educating our young people? This question applies as much to those who remain in school as to those who drop out and need special training. Competent observers, without belittling the value of the humanities, contend that many aspects of today's curriculum are not in keeping with the times. They think the educational system lags seriously behind changes in social values and structures. According to one investigator, teachers do not know how to relate their subject “to the rest of knowledge, as well as to life.” He points out that “In large part, this is what our student rebels are complaining about: … relevance.” It is widely believed, moreover, that the system of occupational guidance in schools and colleges is inadequate and out of date.