A primary complaint about the current U.S. economy has been the hollowing out of “middle-skill jobs” — the type of work that people with high school educations and substantial training could do and earn a “middle wage.”
Be smart: But even if such jobs were restored, it would not mean a revival of America’s battered middle class. That’s because middle-wage jobs largely do not pay a middle-class salary.
Confused? So were we.
What’s happening:Since the early 1970s, the American middle class has shrunk to about half of all families, from about 60%, according to Pew, a trend that’s taken on more importance since the financial crash, becoming a substantial feature of the nation’s broad disaffection.
- Digging into the economic fallout, study after study has noted the deindustrialization of numerous states, such as Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, resulting in tens of thousands of job losses.
- But while many of those jobs once paid middle-class wages, the collapse of unions and other factors have much-reduced the pay. Now, the same jobs are said to pay “middle wages,” but do not suggest a ladder to the actual middle class.
– Axios
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