Systemic Changes to Support Working-Class Men

Summary: To better support working-class men, invest more in apprenticeships and vocational training, focusing on male-friendly learning styles. Facilitate men's entry into growing sectors like healthcare and education, potentially as second careers, by easing career transitions (especially into teaching) and removing unnecessary degree requirements (the "paper ceiling"). De-stigmatize these professions for men.

Insights:

• The US lags behind other developed nations in apprenticeship investment, hindering retraining and access to male-friendly learning.
• "Classically male" jobs are declining due to automation and other factors, necessitating a shift towards growing sectors.
• Unnecessary degree requirements ("paper ceiling") disproportionately affect men, limiting their access to growing professions where experience may be more valuable than formal credentials.

Proper Nouns:

• OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development): Represents advanced economies and provides comparative data on apprenticeship investments.
• STEM: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics fields where efforts have been made to increase female representation. Similar efforts are needed for men in growing sectors like healthcare and education.
• Byron August: From Opportunity at Work, highlights the "paper ceiling" issue.

Research

• What specific policy changes could incentivize businesses to offer more apprenticeships and vocational training?
• How can educational institutions better support mid-career transitions into fields like teaching and healthcare?
• What successful apprenticeship programs in other OECD countries could serve as models for the US?