, Columnist
A Lot of ‘Unskilled’ Workers Actually Aren’t
The rise of AI and America’s transition to a service economy require us to rethink our views about what kinds of jobs matter.
Your wage doesn’t determine your worth.
Photographer: Mark Makela/Getty Images North AmericaThis article is for subscribers only.
Labor Day is an appropriate moment to consider the term “unskilled.” Economists have used it for as long as I can remember, and at some point, I became numb to it, thinking it was just a neutral classification. But it’s not neutral — it’s demeaning and misleading.
Often people have incredible skills; they just aren’t skills currently in high demand. Or they have valuable skills that are abundant relative to demand. Or they simply can’t find a good match between their skills and the market because of where and when they live.