Employment

EMPLOYMENT CAN BE categorized in many ways: blue-collar versus white-collar, full-time versus part-time, year-round versus seasonal, permanent versus migrant, skilled versus semiskilled or unskilled, unionized versus nonunionized, experienced versus apprentice. Classifications by type of work can be reduced to four [Page 303]basic categories: professional, service, industrial, and agricultural. (Jobs related to transportation and communications might be placed in each of the four categories, while those related to mining, logging, and the exploitation of other natural resources might be categorized as either industrial or agricultural. Government employment would fall largely under service.)

In general, the number of jobs in the professional and service categories increases as an economy develops from an industrial to a postindustrial model. In contrast, if an economy is characterized primarily by employment in the agricultural sector, it has remained, in essence, preindustrial.

At the beginning of the 21st century, the most affluent societies are the postindustrial. Those characterized primarily by industrial employment may be either developing or economically stagnant, with the direction of the economy reflected in a rising or eroding standard of living. Economies characterized primarily by employment in agriculture are generally undeveloped or under-developed—and impoverished.

Indeed, in any given economy, the affluence of individual workers can similarly be gauged by the type of work they are engaged in, with professionals being the most highly compensated and agricultural workers being the least compensated. The salaries for the best-paying service jobs typically exceed those for the best-paying industrial jobs, but wages for those employed in the highly unionized heavy industries greatly exceed the wages earned by those in entry-level service jobs that require minimal training or formal skills.

The United States is the world's largest and arguably the most advanced economy. In 2004, services accounted for 79.4 percent of the $11.75 trillion Gross Domestic Product (GDP); industrial production, 19.7 percent; and agriculture, 0.9 percent. The professional and service sectors employed 76.7 percent of the labor force of 147.4 million workers; manufacturing employed 22.7 percent; and agriculture, 0.7 percent.

Similar percentages are found in other advanced economies. In Japan, services accounted for 74.1 percent of the $3.745 trillion GDP; industrial production, 24.7 percent; and agriculture, 1.3 percent. Of the labor force of 66.97 million, 74.1 percent were employed in the service sector, 24.7 percent in industry, and 1.3 percent in agriculture. In Germany, services accounted for 68 percent of the $2.362 trillion GDP; industrial production, 31 percent; and agriculture, 1 percent. Of the workforce of 42.63 million, 63.8 percent were employed in the service sector, 33.4 percent in industry, and 2.8 percent in agriculture. And in the United Kingdom, services accounted for 72.7 percent of the $1.782 trillion GDP; industrial production, 26.3 percent; and agriculture, one percent. The service sector employed 79.5 percent ofthe workforce of 29.78 million; industry, 19.1 percent; and agriculture, one percent.

The employment ratios among the sectors of developing economies are much flatter and show a much greater dependence on the agricultural sector. In the People's Republic of China, industrial production and construction accounted for 52.9 percent of the $7.262 trillion GDP; services, 33 percent; and agriculture, 13.8 percent. Of the 760.8 million people in the workforce, 49 percent were employed in agriculture, 29 percent in services, and 22 percent in industry.

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