5 Jobs That Will Be The Hardest To Fill In 2025

Fast Company ^ | 07/23/1021 | Gwen Moran

[SeekAndFind]

With low labor-force participation, declining immigration levels, and the looming retirement of baby boomers on the horizon, the U.S. labor market is tightening and driving up wages. Over the next decade, the country will experience a labor shortage that will disproportionately affect some industries and professions, predicts an April 2016 report from The Conference Board.

“We may see policy or other changes over the next 10 years that could influence us greatly,” says Phil Noftsinger, CPA, the creator of the CBIZ Small Business Employment Index (SBEI), which has tracked small companies’ hiring trends since 2009. He cites pushback on free trade that might increase domestic manufacturing jobs or the rate at which automation will change demand for jobs in clerical and accounting sectors, for example.

Which sectors are most at risk for labor shortages? They’re not necessarily the fastest-growing sectors, but those where entrants into the field are not keeping up with demand. Fields like computer sciences aren’t at risk, The Conference Board report finds, but a few, more traditional sectors are. While not a comprehensive list, five key areas are predicted to be among the hardest hit over the next decade.

SKILLED TRADES

Electricians and machinists both made the top 10 on The Conference Board’s labor shortages index, while other jobs at high risk include plant and system operators and rail transportation workers. These jobs have large numbers of workers retiring, but fewer young people choosing these careers, which are also difficult to offshore or fully automate. But the successful trade worker of the future is going to be one who has a comfort level with advanced machinery, says Kip Wright, senior vice president of human resources consulting firm Manpower North America.

For example, as welders’ tools become more sophisticated and effective, using automation to create better results, the focus on the individual’s expertise may shift to understanding the chemistry of the compounds that are being welded to further improve the process, he says. “That’s a very different skill set, even though it would still be skilled trade workers,” he adds.

HEALTH CARE

As the population of baby boomers ages and has increasing health issues, health care workers of all types will be in greater demand. Occupational and physical therapy aides are at the highest risk of shortage, according to The Conference Board report, with health diagnosing and treating professionals ranking third. Physician and nursing professions require high levels of education that may be out of reach for some. However, jobs like home health aides may not pay enough to attract the numbers of workers necessary to meet demand, says management consultant and venture capitalist Peter Cohan, lecturer of strategy at Babson College.

MANUFACTURING

Surprisingly, U.S. manufacturing is facing down a shortage of 2 million workers by 2020 in areas ranging from engineering to production workers, according to 2015 research by Deloitte. The research found that while more than half give manufacturing careers high marks when it comes to rewarding careers and compensation, just 37% would encourage their children to seek a career in manufacturing. Millennials surveyed ranked it last of seven categories as their choice of career to start today.

SALES

Even as people can buy virtually anything online with a few clicks, salespeople will be in high demand. There is vast demand for people who have a combination of social and cognitive skills and who also have the ability to position a product or service in a way that makes customers want to buy it, Wright says. Such specific skill combinations will make it tough to fill demand.

MATH-RELATED FIELDS

It may seem surprising that STEM jobs as a whole are not predicted to be at risk for shortages. That risk is mitigated by the increasing number of young people choosing these careers, as well as immigrants who work in this area, The Conference Board report finds. However, math-focused jobs like actuaries and statisticians face high risk of labor shortages. Add the demand for mathematical thinking posed by the big-data sector, and you have a strong, growing need for people with math backgrounds, and not enough people choosing math as a career path, Cohan says.

[Mariner]

I encourage every kid with a high IQ to endeavor to be a CCIE.

$250k everywhere/anywhere and no college degree or debt.

Or commercial electrician...$150k everywhere. Again no degree or debt.

Smarts is all they need.

[SeekAndFind]

RE: I encourage every kid with a high IQ to endeavor to be a CCIE.

For those who don’t know what a CCIE is.... Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert, or CCIE, is a technical certification offered by Cisco Systems.

The Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert and Cisco Certified Design Expert certifications were established to assist the industry in distinguishing the top echelon of internetworking experts worldwide and to assess expert-level infrastructure network design skills worldwide.

These certifications are generally accepted worldwide as the most prestigious networking certifications in the industry. The CCIE community has established a reputation of leading the networking industry in deep technical networking knowledge and are deployed into the most technically challenging network assignments.

The program is currently divided into six different areas of expertise or “tracks”.

One may choose to pursue multiple CCIE tracks in several different categories of Cisco technology: Routing & Switching, Service Provider, Security, Collaboration, Data Center, and Wireless.

[HonkyTonkMan]

Fast Company demonstrates enlightened thinking with statements such as a salesperson should have "the ability to position a product or service in a way that makes customers want to buy it."

And using 6 year old data to forecast manufacturing demand.

[alexander_busek]

RE: Written in 2016

SeekAndFind: What’s the significance of this? Would it be better if it were written today?

Yes, generally speaking, article making predictions - especially about the future (Y. Berra) - have a shelf-life and become obsolete after a few years.

After all: Would you want to read an article entitled "These are the best stocks to buy this year!" written in 2006?

Regards,

[daniel1212]

"“U.S. manufacturing is facing down a shortage of 2 million workers by 2020” when was this written? old? or a typo?"

"predicts an April 2016 report"

At least it is posted under General/Chat

And it does not mention spies. Article just below this one on FR: Los Angeles Electrical Engineer Gets Five Years in Prison for Selling Missile Technology to China

[bobcat62]

Go through the pain of a CCIE to be low-balled by all of India? No thanks.

[jmacusa]

Well I'm sure there will be plenty of need for people with Masters Degrees in Interpretive Afro-Haitian Dance and there's the whole wide field of gender studies.