Source: Christian Science Monitor
by staff
“The rapid adoption of artificial intelligence in workplaces across the United States is automating a wide range of administrative, managerial, and even specialized high-tech tasks. Employers and employees alike are understandably concerned. Yet, the same AI boom is also driving demand for workers in professions long seen as declining in prestige and pay scales: the skilled trades or blue-collar jobs that helped build America’s middle class. As the cost of a college education increases, and as young people seek less debt, enrollment in vocational community-college programs and private trade schools has increased by about 6% annually in recent years. Still, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, more than 400,000 skilled trade jobs remained unfilled in 2025. Paradoxically, these economic and social pressure points highlight new possibilities for expanding pathways to prosperity.” (04/08/26)