The New Class War: Saving Democracy from the Managerial Elite

by Michael Lind

What about occupations with the greatest absolute number of job openings? Here the only STEM job category among the top ten is “software developers, applications” at number four, paying $101,790 a year. The other categories with the most openings in the US are personal care aides; combined food preparation and serving workers, including fast food; registered nurses; home health aides; janitors and cleaners, except maids and housekeeping cleaners; general and operations managers; laborers and freight, stock, and material movers; medical assistants; and waiters and waitresses. Among these non-STEM jobs, only two pay relatively well—general and operations managers ($100,410) and registered nurses ($70,000). These happen to be the only two that require college degrees, according to the BLS. None of the other jobs with the greatest absolute growth in the US pay more than the annual salary of a medical assistant ($32,480).