This chapter explores the reasons why firing someone is not easy in the modern economy, discussing legal concerns, human empathy, and the concept of 'dehiring'. It also highlights how individuals can stay in their positions for a long time, even with poor performance or a fake diploma.
Bryan Caplan of George Mason University and the author of The Case Against Education talks about the book with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Caplan argues that very little learning takes place in formal education and that very little of the return to college comes from skills or knowledge that is acquired in the classroom. Schooling, he concludes, as it is currently conducted is mostly a waste of time and money. Caplan bring a great deal of evidence to support his dramatic claim and much of the conversation focuses on the challenge of measuring and observing what students actually learn.