Last year was the year the scales tipped in the global job market. Layoffs in consulting and investment banking that started in early 2023 have continued to mount, and yet the wider jobs market has remained relatively resilient. Demand for engineers and healthcare professionals is reportedly increasing. Blue collar workers in industries such as mining, construction and manufacturing, whose skills graduates have often turned their noses up at, are also in demand.
The country is coming to terms with the fact that, for years, it has been reliant on workers trained in other countries. Couple this with the growing importance of artificial intelligence and its ability to replace white collar jobs and it’s perhaps conceivable to think of a world in which jobs that require technical skills become more important than the supposedly cerebral fields of banking and consulting.
Demand for workers with technical skills, rather than university degrees, is rising
This runs contrary to the dream sold to the many students who walk through university gates every Autumn.
Britain’s best politics newsletters
You get two free articles each week when you sign up to The Spectator’s emails.
Already a subscriber? Log in
Comments
Join the debate for just £1 a month
Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for £3.
UNLOCK ACCESS Just £1 a monthAlready a subscriber? Log in