Occupations

Occupations on the Decline

by Linda Marling Church, Research Assistant

W hen was the last time you encountered a phone line installer, a meter reader or a gas station attendant? When you make a purchase, how often is it done face-to-face with a sales clerk vs. from a computer to another computer. How long has it been since you saw a want-ad for a file clerk? Those occupations are following in the same disappearing footsteps as the shoe repairer, postal service mail sorters and projectionists.

One thing impacting all these occupations is technology. Technology is not the only “culprit” that can cause a decline in an occupation’s demand: changing consumer demand, changing business practices and foreign competition are others. Many consumers choose less expensive foreign-made goods over more expensive American-made products. And often, there are no American manufacturers left to compete with the imports.

Education level correlates with job growth. Only two of the occupations with the fastest rate of decline are in a category that indicates workers have any postsecondary education, while the rest are in an on-the-job training category.

In general, occupations requiring postsecondary education are expected to experience higher rates of growth than those in an on-the-job training category. Occupations in the associate-degree category are projected to grow faster than those occupations requiring less education, at about 19 percent.

In addition, occupations in the master’sand first-professional-degree categories are anticipated to grow by 18 percent each, and occupations in the bachelor’s and doctoral degree categories are expected to grow by about 17 percent each.

All is not lost. The need for replacements in declining occupations will still provide some jobs. And with some education, an employee can enter a growing occupation.

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