The blue-collar economy conjures images of shuttered factories and the disappearance of good jobs. Those images reflect the suffering among blue-collar workers left behind by the shift away from an economy based in manufacturing, but they do not tell the whole story. In fact, we find that there are still 30 million good jobs that do not require a Bachelor’s degree. These good jobs pay an average of $55,000 per year, and a minimum of $35,000 annually.

1. Good Jobs That Pay
without a BA
By: Anthony P. Carnevale, Jeff Strohl, Ban Cheah, and Neil Ridley
July 26, 2017

2. Overview
• The blue-collar economy has not disappeared; there
are 30 million good jobs in the United States
• Educational attainment is rising, but not all good jobs
require bachelor’s degrees
• These good jobs have a median salary of $55,000
annually

3. What is a good job?

4. 30 million American workers aged 25 to 64 have
good jobs that pay without a BA

5. Economy Shifts to Skilled-Services Industries
• The economy is shifting from traditional blue-collar
industries
• Job growth in skilled-services industries has offset
losses caused by the decline of manufacturing
• Manufacturing still has a large share of good jobs

6. Growth of Good Jobs in Skilled-Services Industries

7. Good Jobs in Today’s Economy
• Since 1991, 4 million jobs have been added to the
economy for workers with associate’s degrees or some
college education
• Today’s good jobs require workers to have some
postsecondary education or training beyond high school

8. Between 1991 and 2015, the share of good jobs going to workers
without a BA fell from 60 percent to 45 percent

9. Who gets good jobs?
• Whites have the largest share of good jobs that pay without a
bachelor’s degree, although this number is declining
• Latinos have experienced the most growth in good jobs, but
still have a smaller share than Whites
• Blacks have smallest share of good jobs, and have experienced
the least growth
• For the past 25 years, men have maintained the largest share of
good jobs at 70 percent

10. Industries for non-BA good jobs

11. Occupations for non-BA good jobs

12. Conclusion
• Apprenticeships, Career and Technical Education, and
effective career counseling can provide provide alternative
pathways for those without bachelor’s degrees
• Promote access to good jobs by strengthening the connections
between school and work
• Encourage transparency of the economic value of non-BA
college programs for students to make better decisions

13. Good Jobs Project Website
Visit our new site, Goodjobsdata.org, which documents the share
of these jobs, nationally, at the state level, by industry and
occupation, and by wage. It also explores worker demographics.

14. For more information:
See the full report at: goodjobsdata.org
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