The New Division of Labor: How Computers Are Creating the Next Job Market (Hardcover)

~ (Author), Richard J. Murnane (Author) "ON MARCH 22, 1964, THE AD HOC COMMITTEE ON THE TRIPLE Revolution sent a fourteen-page memorandum to President Lyndon Johnson..." (more)
Key Phrases: tasks requiring expert thinking, computer substitution, routine cognitive tasks, Basic Blue, Murphy School, Stephen Saltz (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

As computers make inroads on every aspect of business, will people cease to matter? That’s the underlying question of this fascinating examination of the new labor market. In lucid prose, Levy and Murnane—economics professors at MIT and Harvard, respectively, and co-authors of the 1996 bestseller Teaching the New Basic Skills—present their answer, and their expectations regarding how computers will affect future wages and job distributions. They begin by debunking the common perception that computers eliminate jobs; the truth, they say, is that "computers are Janus-faced, helping to create jobs even as they destroy jobs." Supported by trend data—clearly laid out in charts, graphs and extensive footnotes—they argue that every technical advance since the introduction of computers to the workplace "shifts works away from routine tasks and towards tasks requiring expert thinking and complex communication." Levy and Murnane also assert that, while it is easy to point to all the new service economy jobs that involve standing behind fast-food counters, the majority of newly created jobs have put workers behind desks, in control of computers and in front of other humans where they are asked to use cognitive skills that outstrip any computer’s capability. But if the replacement of humans by computers isn’t a realistic crisis, the authors do point out another looming problem: a possible shortage in properly trained workers. Blue-collar and clerical workers displaced by computers already have a difficult time adjusting to the requirements of the new high-wage jobs, and, if educational curriculums aren’t changed to reflect the market’s demand for sophisticated thinking and communication, students may graduate without the skills they need either. Readers interested in labor and technology shouldn’t be put off by this book’s dull cover art. Its contents are anything but boring.
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Review

"They foresee a continuation of recent trends, involving replacement of low-skilled work by technology." -- John Weisberg, Region Focus

"the future belongs to people who excel at expert thinking (solving problems for which there are no rules-based solutions)". -- Thornton A. May, Computerworld

A concise and easily accessible exploration of how the computer has shifted the demands for certain types of skills. -- Washington Post

Remember that barely one-third of New York City's eighth-graders can read and do basic math. Then, read this book. -- Nicole Gelinas, New York Post

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Princeton University Press (April 12, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0691119724
• ISBN-13: 978-0691119724
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #888,779 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A most insightful analysis of the historical labor data. , November 27, 2004

By	Gaetan Lion - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This is a very short and easy to read book. Yet, it is very informative and insightful. I have read many books covering the same theme written by Peter Drucker, John Naisbitt, Robert Reich, and Lester Thurow among other visionaries and economists. This one is the best on the subject for two reasons. The two authors studied the historical data much more extensively than the others. Also, this book is more focused. The authors did not get sidetracked by many related economic and political issues.

The authors extensive research dispels thoroughly the notion that computerization is bad for employment. To the contrary, computerization has increased both the quantity and quality of jobs.

The authors studied in detail labor trends over the past 40 years to support their conclusion. They uncovered the prescient work of Herbert Simon, who wrote an essay in the 1960s on the change in labor mix with the advent of technologies. The authors documented that for the most part Simon was correct. Due to computerization, the labor mix was going to change materially over the next several decades tilted towards a greater concentration of jobs associated with greater complexity in terms of critical thinking and judgment.

Just as Simon predicted, there is today a far greater percentage of the population involved in complex jobs associated with an intense critical thinking component. Such jobs include managers, professionals, technicians, and many sales related activities. By the same token, there is a far smaller percentage of the population engaged in blue collar routine work.

As mentioned, just as the quality of jobs (greater complexity) has improved immensely during the past several decades, so as the quantity. Between 1969 and 2000, the labor force grew by a staggering 63% from 83 million to 135 million. And, this surge in labor occurred during the most intense computerization era.

If we just observe the change in our own working lives, we can confirm that our job functions have changed dramatically for the better. We all use computers with increasingly powerful hardware that can handle increasingly complex software. In turn, the software replaces many of the routine components of our jobs. It also gives us quick access to a math level which would have been accessible only to PhDs not long ago. I don't think any of us would readily turn the clock back on computerization regarding our specific jobs. The authors will convince you the same is true at the macroeconomic level.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Good Read!, July 28, 2004

By	Rolf Dobelli "getAbstract.com" (Switzerland) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This excellent short book has implications far beyond its titular subject. Although ostensibly about the effect of computers on labor, it provides a model for thinking in economically rational terms about any kind of innovation that offers lower costs or greater efficiency. In a nutshell, scaremongers tend to exaggerate the threats and underestimate the benefits of such innovations. Some prognosticators, for example, predicted massive unemployment, poverty and social unrest due to employment disruptions stemming from computers. Why? Because computers could do many jobs, especially automated ones, faster and better. Something like the classical economic notion of comparative advantage is at work: computers and people should each do what they are good at. On the other hand, the authors analyze how innovation leaves many low-level, unskilled workers behind, and explain how and why the haves must make reasonable, just provisions for the have-nots. We believe that any reader who appreciates lucid analysis and clear prose will enjoy this book, and will gain understanding and perspective.

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Academic, dry, and mildly digressive, October 5, 2004

By	Gilad L. Rosner "Techno-generalist" (Brooklyn, NY) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I saw the authors of this book interviewed on the Newshour with Jim Lehrer and immediately ordered it. I found a book that made its central points within 2-3 chapters, but it continued to illustrate those points ad nauseum in subsequent chapters. The examples in the book of methods and challenges of teaching expert thinking and complex communications are too detailed, in that the depth reached in the examples does a disservice to the key points of the book. Ironically, this book could be even shorter than its 157 pages.

The central points of this book are very basic, and anyone who works with technology for a living will find it almost too basic to bother with. One valuable part of the book deals with the trends of income and job availability as related to increases in the use of computing; it's nice to see that subject addressed succinctly. If I were teaching a class on IT or evolution in technology, I would assign select readings from this book to illustrate the connections between what people do better than computers and vice-versa, income, skill acquisition, and historical trends.