Occupational employment projections through 1995, (EXCERPT), Monthly Labor Review Online, November 1983

Occupational employment projections
through 1995

George T. Silvestri, John M. Lukasiewicz and Marcus E. Einstein

The most recent occupational projections by the Bureau of Labor Statistics suggest that a wide range of job skills will be needed in 1995. Employment in jobs requiring a college education or specialized post-secondary technical training are expected to increase significantly between 1982 and 1995. However, many jobs that do not require post-secondary training are also expected to expand significantly. For example, the projected rapid increase in demand for medical services will require large numbers of nursing aides and orderlies in addition to highly trained medical practitioners.

On the other hand, employment growth in many occupations will be affected by technological change through the mid-1990s. For example, word processing equipment will slow the employment growth of typist, and industrial robots will reduce the growth in employment of welders, production painters, and material moving occupations. However, despite widespread technological advances, employment will continue to advance in most traditional fields from 1982 to 1995. More workers will be needed to drive trucks to deliver goods, to clean a growing number of buildings, to perform health and personal services and provide police and fire protection for our increasing population, and to maintain and repair a larger stock of automobiles, appliances, and factory equipment.

Rapid expansion of high technology will spur the growth of scientists, engineers, technicians, and computer specialists. They will be required to design, develop, and use high-technology products such as computers, scientific and medical instruments, communication equipment, and robots. Employment in these occupations has generally grown faster than the economy as a whole and most are expected to continue to do so. However, even in some of these fields, technological advances will have an impact on reducing employment needs. For example, advances in computer-aided design technology are expected to severely limit the employment growth of drafters.

This excerpt is from an article published in the November 1983 issue of the Monthly Labor Review. The full text of the article is available in Adobe Acrobat's Portable Document Format (PDF). See How to view a PDF file for more information.

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