“America’s New Millionaire Class: Plumbers and HVAC Entrepreneurs”, was the headline of an article in the Wall Street Journal this weekend.
My book “The Age of Decay: How Aging and Shrinking Populations could Usher in the Decline of Civilization”, highlights the downside of rising educational attainment in developed countries.
Put simply, too many young people are pursuing college education, contributing to a growing shortage of trade workers. This shortage drives up wages in the trades and presents exciting opportunities for the few who opt for “blue-collar” work.
Meanwhile, those pursuing higher education could find their wages come under pressure due to an oversupply of skilled workers. Their jobs may even be under threat as AI is increasingly targeting high-skilled applications.
I have always taken the benefits of higher education as a given and thought my kids would follow this path. But now I am not so sure…