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Thank (Or Blame) The Supreme Court For Credential Inflation
Forbes ^ | November 6, 2014 | George Leef

Posted on 11/06/2014 5:47:35 AM PST by reaganaut1

Perhaps you have noticed that many jobs that require only basic skills and a cooperative attitude are now walled off to Americans who don’t possess a college degree. A recent study entitled Moving the Goalposts: How Demand for a Bachelor’s Degree is Reshaping the Workforce contains a lot of evidence on that. For example, for sales representatives and retail supervisors, 56 percent of recent job postings specify that having a college degree is a requirement.

This doesn’t mean that those jobs have such high intellectual demands that no one without a college degree could possibly do them. What it means is that these companies won’t bother with anyone with lower educational credentials.

Our mania for college credentials works strongly against upward mobility for individuals who, for whatever reason, don’t have a college degree. They are confined to the shrinking and mostly low-pay segment of the labor market where educational credentials still don’t matter. (As I argued here, that explains much of the earnings gap between workers with and those without college degrees.)

But how did this regrettable situation come about? Why don’t employers directly evaluate applicants’ capabilities rather than insisting that they first put in the huge amount of time and money it takes to obtain a degree?

A 1971 Supreme Court decision, Griggs v. Duke Power, had a lot to do with it, by giving employers a strong incentive to use educational credentials as a proxy for aptitude testing.

(Excerpt) Read more at forbes.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Editorial; Government
KEYWORDS: college; diparateimpact; education; eeoc; georgeleef; griggs

1 posted on 11/06/2014 5:47:35 AM PST by reaganaut1
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To: reaganaut1

This is nothing new. It was true when I was in high school in the 70s.


2 posted on 11/06/2014 5:51:56 AM PST by Wage Slave
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To: reaganaut1
Perhaps you have noticed that many jobs that require only basic skills and a cooperative attitude are now walled off to Americans who don’t possess a college degree.

Ha haaaa! Joke's on you, Illegals! You came here looking for jobs but it turns out you'll have to spend your whole lives on welfare and food stamps.

Wait. Why I laugh?

3 posted on 11/06/2014 5:54:49 AM PST by Texas Eagle
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To: reaganaut1

Spot on analysis, although the true culprit is liberalism/progressivism/et al. Government schools dropped vocational studies and this harmed people. Democrat controlled municipalities fell for licensing and permitting schemes that further harmed the upward mobility of “blue collar” workers. Toss in the heavy tax burden of paying for useless government schools, services and projects and you’ve crushed the nascent middle class before it’s even formed.


4 posted on 11/06/2014 5:55:45 AM PST by 1010RD (First, Do No Harm)
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To: Wage Slave
Not true. Back in the 70s you had vocational schools and apprenticeship programs sponsored by businesses.
5 posted on 11/06/2014 5:57:05 AM PST by 1010RD (First, Do No Harm)
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To: reaganaut1

Mr GG2’s son is running into this problem. He is very smart and a good salesman but no college degree. He is finding he cannot advance or even get some sales jobs he is overqualified for experience wise.


6 posted on 11/06/2014 6:02:51 AM PST by Georgia Girl 2 (The only purpose o f a pistol is to fight your way back to the rifle you should never have dropped.)
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To: reaganaut1

The misapplication of the Constitution and civil rights law has been the destruction of the United States.


7 posted on 11/06/2014 6:06:13 AM PST by chesley (Obama -- Muslim or dhimmi? And does it matter?)
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To: reaganaut1

I know a guy who used to work for me. He was solid trustworthy smart and partied too much, no degree. He buckled down finally and is now an Audi tech. Paid to go to school after school. Screw those admin paper pushing jobs. There are some cool careers if you look around. Most of them are fairly mobile to, you can live wherever you want.


8 posted on 11/06/2014 6:16:21 AM PST by ImJustAnotherOkie (zerogottago)
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To: Wage Slave

Well, it says a 1971 Supreme Court decision...


9 posted on 11/06/2014 6:18:09 AM PST by smalltownslick
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To: Texas Eagle

They are doing 90% of the construction here plus roofing and many exterior home repairs. I have hired a few as painters because most white boys will not work or think painting is a $15-20 plus an hour job.


10 posted on 11/06/2014 6:42:04 AM PST by Lumper20 ( clown in Chief has own Gov employees Gestapo)
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To: reaganaut1

My job is referred to as “help desk monkey”.
I started at an ISP many years ago and all you needed to know is the difference between “Windows” and a window to get the job. Even then I think they hired anyone who showed up.

At my present job they are hiring a new help desk person and I would not qualify. ** I am to train the person in : )

I read the posting and at the bottom of it it says: Frequent lifting and/or moving up to 10 pounds and occasionally up to 25 pounds

The heaviest item you lift is a piece of paper, maybe the stapler. Wonder why they include something like that?


11 posted on 11/06/2014 11:20:21 AM PST by minnesota_bound
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To: minnesota_bound

Here is more detail on the case and some others if you scroll up or down from the article on Willie Griggs (1920 - 1977)
http://tinyurl.com/oc9cv8q


12 posted on 11/06/2014 11:33:03 AM PST by minnesota_bound
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