[PEN-L:2451] The high tech jobs of the future

[D Shniad <shniad@xxxxxx>]

HIGH TECH: THE JOBS OF THE FUTURE?

It has become a contemporary article of faith that the jobs
of the future will be in the high tech sector.  Of late,
however, there has been a great deal of evidence that
presents a prima facie challenge to this article of faith.
First, the string of lay-offs in the telecommunications
industry:

ANNOUNCED JOB LOSSES IN TELECOMMUNICATIONS SINCE 1992

                    		Latest date of      		Jobs to be
                    		Announcement        		Eliminated

AT&T                 	January 2, 1996    		40,000
AT&T                 	through Feb. 1994  		19,500

Cumulative Totals
NYNEX                	January 1994       		38,800
Bell South           	May 1995           		21,500
GTE                  	January 1994       		19,600
Pacific Telesis      	June 1995          		10,500
Pacific Bell         	January 1994       		10,000
US West              	September 1993          	9,000
Ameritech            	March 1994         		7,500
South New England Tel    August 1995         	4,160
MCI                  	August 1995        		3,000
Southwest Bell       	September 1993          	1,500

Source: New York Times   Wednesday January 3, 1996


Not to be outdone, the more "entrepreneurial" computer
industry is slashing away at its work force, as well.  This
week Apple announced that it is cutting 1300 jobs, or 8% of
its work force.  But Apple's is merely the latest
announcement of this nature.  Over the past three years,
there has been widespread bloodletting in this industry.  On
January 18, Associated Press provide a list of the top ten
lay-offs in the high tech business over the past three
years:

1. IBM cut 63,000 jobs in July 1993
2. Digital cut 20,000 jobs in May 1994
3. NCR cut 7500 jobs in November 1993
4. Wang cut 3300 jobs in March 1993
5. Digital cut 3200 jobs in in April 1993
6. Apple cut 2500 jobs in July 1993
7. Novell cut 1750 jobs in November 1995
8. Storage Technology cut 1500 jobs in November 1995
9. Electronic Data Systems cut 1358 jobs in January 1994
10.Apple cut 1300 jobs in January 1996

Is there anybody who seriously believes that the number of
new jobs that will be created in high tech will compensate for
these lay-offs, let alone generate a net increase in
employment in this sector?

Sid Shniad