Fagan Harris
Baltimore and the country are at an important crossroads that will decide the economic fate for millions of people for years to come. COVID-19 has triggered historic unemployment levels. Due to the unprecedented nature of the pandemic and our path to medical, social and economic recovery, we don’t know if or when many of these jobs will return.
Even before the crisis hit, changing consumer behaviors, automation and digital transformation were shifting the employment landscape. Grocery stores no longer need baggers, but engineers to debug self-checkout software. Factories have more robots on the floor than humans. Farming equipment is more advanced than the rockets that took us to the moon.
However, those displaced by technology or coronavirus-triggered closures are some of the least likely to be able to secure jobs in expanding industries. A combination of cost and outdated methods of assessing and hiring talent lock many people out of the jobs of the future.
We can’t let this displacement of lives and livelihoods continue unremedied.
