“The goal is to reserve education for the rich”
By Nat Martin, Centerville NY
The Department of Education is being parceled out to other departments, making it easier to close the department as proposed in Executive Order 14242 (link). Executive Order 14278 (link) says moving education to the Department of Labor will prepare Americans for skilled trade jobs, an admirable goal.
However, there is a difference between education and training: education gives student tools to think; training gives students tools to work. Education is more flexible: if jobs change in the future, the educated students will be able to change; the trained students will need new training. Transferring educational activities to the Department of Labor changes the focus from education to training.
The ratio of jobs to workers determines the cost of hiring workers, so increasing the number of workers or reducing the number of jobs—say through automation—will likely decrease pay. Automation is likely. Skilled trade workers are more likely to be truck drivers or garbage collectors than carpenters or plumbers. (In 2022, 39% of skilled trade workers were in transportation and material moving but only 18% were in installation, maintenance and repair (link).
Reducing wages for skilled workers benefits the wealthy owners—the job creators—who can pay less for the workers they need. The wealthy don’t need Department of Education grants to send their children to the best private schools and colleges. Attacks on diversity, equity and inclusion make it clear that the goal is to reserve education for the rich. These attacks claim to reduce preference for minority applicants even though most preferential admissions are to “legacy” students who are primarily white (link). Thus, moving support for schools to the Department of Labor looks like another step in leaving the poor with the work while leaving the rich with the wealth and power.
