Work Is Being Restructured
The global labor market is undergoing its most significant transformation since industrialization.
78 million
Net new jobs globally by 2030. That is 170 million created and 92 million displaced, representing 22% of today's jobs affected by creation or destruction.
World Economic Forum, Future of Jobs Report, January 2025
Global Employment Picture
~5%
global unemployment rate in 2024, the lowest in ILO data going back to 1991
ILO, World Employment and Social Outlook Trends, January 2025
402M
additional jobs needed globally to close the "jobs gap," a measure that captures unemployment and underemployment together
ILO, cited in WEF Future of Jobs Report, January 2025
53 million jobs now projected for global employment growth in 2025, revised down from 60 million due to economic uncertainty
ILO, World Employment and Social Outlook, May 2025 Update
The Automation Question
57%
of U.S. work hours could technically have their tasks performed by current AI and robotics
McKinsey Global Institute, "Agents, robots, and us," November 25, 2025
44%
of U.S. work hours could have their tasks performed by AI agents
McKinsey Global Institute, "Agents, robots, and us," November 25, 2025
13%
of U.S. work hours could have their tasks performed by robots
McKinsey Global Institute, "Agents, robots, and us," November 25, 2025
$2.9 trillion economic value of U.S. work hours that could be automated by 2030 in a midpoint adoption scenario
McKinsey Global Institute, "Agents, robots, and us," November 25, 2025
60% of jobs in high-income economies could be affected by AI. In low-income economies, only 26%.
IMF, "Gen-AI: Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Work," January 2024
Technical potential vs. actual displacement
McKinsey is explicit that 57% represents technical potential, not forecast job loss. The actual impact depends on how organizations choose to integrate AI with human workers, whether as replacement or augmentation.
The Skills Transformation
39%
of workers' core skills will change by 2030
WEF, Future of Jobs Report, January 2025
57%
was the projection in 2020, suggesting training initiatives are helping
WEF, Future of Jobs Report, 2020
59 out of every 100 workers globally will need training by 2030. Of these, 29 can be upskilled in current roles, 19 can be upskilled and redeployed, and 11 are unlikely to receive the reskilling they need.
World Economic Forum, Future of Jobs Report, January 2025
7x growth in demand for AI fluency in two years, making it the fastest-growing skill in U.S. job postings
McKinsey Global Institute, "Agents, robots, and us," November 25, 2025
47.7% of workers globally hold qualifications that match their job requirements. The share of over-educated workers has increased from 15.5% to 18.9% over the past decade while the share of under-educated workers declined from 37.9% to 33.4%.
ILO, World Employment and Social Outlook, May 2025
Which Jobs Are Growing
| Occupation |
Projected Growth |
| Farmworkers |
+34 million by 2030 (green transition) |
| Delivery drivers |
Top 5 fastest-growing globally |
| Software developers |
Top 5 fastest-growing globally |
| Building construction workers |
Top 5 fastest-growing globally |
| Information processing sector |
+11 million created, 9 million displaced (net +2 million) |
World Economic Forum, Future of Jobs Report, January 2025
The Human Sustainability Crisis
A global disconnect exists between how work is structured and what workers need to thrive.
21%
of employees globally are engaged at work in 2024, matching pandemic lows and down from 23% in 2023
Gallup, State of the Global Workplace Report, 2025
$438B
in lost productivity globally from the 2024 engagement decline
Gallup, State of the Global Workplace Report, 2025
$9.6T
potential GDP boost (9% of global GDP) if all organizations reached best-practice engagement of approximately 70%
Gallup, State of the Global Workplace Report, 2025
The Manager Crisis
70% of team engagement is directly attributable to the manager
Gallup, State of the Global Workplace Report, 2025
27% manager engagement in 2024, down from 30% in 2023
Gallup, State of the Global Workplace Report, 2025
Regional Engagement
| Region |
Engagement Rate |
| North America (U.S. and Canada) |
31% |
| Europe (average) |
13% |
| United Kingdom |
10% |
Gallup, State of the Global Workplace Report, 2025
33% of global employees rate their wellbeing as "thriving," down from 34% in 2023 and 35% in 2022
Gallup, State of the Global Workplace Report, 2025
The New Security Paradox
Despite record-low unemployment and high job vacancies, job security has become workers' most sought-after preference globally.
The narrowing wage gap
The wage-growth gap between job switchers and stayers has narrowed sharply compared to 2023. In early 2023, switchers saw wage growth of 7.7% versus 5.5% for stayers. By 2025, that gap had nearly closed, representing the smallest differential in over a decade.
Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, Wage Growth Tracker, 2025
8%
Average decline in job tenure across OECD countries (about nine months) between 2012 and 2019.
OECD, "Retaining Talent at All Ages," 2023
The Ecosystem Shift
Traditional employment models are giving way to dynamic workforce ecosystems.
154–435 million
workers in the global online gig economy, depending on how platform participation is measured, representing up to 12% of the global labor force
World Bank, "Working Without Borders," 2023
United States (Industry Data)
27.7M
full-time independent workers in 2024, up from 13.6M in 2020
MBO Partners, State of Independence, November 2024
18.5M
digital nomads in the U.S., up 153% since 2019
MBO Partners, State of Independence, 2025
5.6M
independent workers earning $100K+ annually, up 87% since 2020
MBO Partners, State of Independence, 2025
Global Labor Income
52.4% of global GDP now goes to workers (labor income share), down from 53.0% in 2014
ILO, World Employment and Social Outlook, May 2025
Careers Don't Look Like They Used To
Traditional career paths are disappearing across the developed world.
OECD Countries
8% decline in average job tenure across OECD countries (about nine months) between 2012 and 2019
OECD, "Retaining Talent at All Ages," 2023
6% of workers aged 45–64 change jobs annually across OECD countries, compared to 17% of workers under 30
OECD Employment Outlook, 2025
41% of the OECD workforce is now aged 45–64, up from 29% in 1990
OECD, "Promoting Better Career Choices for Longer Working Lives," 2024
United States
3.9 yrs
median job tenure in the U.S. in January 2024, the lowest since January 2002
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employee Tenure Summary, January 2024
9.6 yrs
average tenure for workers aged 55–64
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2024
12.9 average jobs held by Americans born 1957–1964 from ages 18 to 58. Over 40% of these jobs were held between ages 18 and 24.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Longitudinal Survey, August 2025
Working Longer
55.9% employment rate for people aged 60–64 across OECD countries. Ranges from 77.2% in Iceland to 25.4% in Luxembourg.
OECD Employment Outlook, 2025
Working Lives Are Getting Longer
Life expectancy changes the mathematics of career planning in ways most people have not fully processed.
73.3 yrs
global average life expectancy in 2024 (76.2 for women, 70.6 for men)
UN World Population Prospects, 2024
33 yrs
gap between highest (Monaco at 87 years) and lowest (South Sudan at 54 years) life expectancies
UN World Population Prospects, 2024
The Centenarian Boom
101,000
Americans age 100+ in 2024
Pew Research Center and U.S. Census Bureau, 2024
422,000
projected by 2054, a quadrupling in 30 years
Pew Research Center and U.S. Census Bureau, 2024
1.6 billion people will be 65+ globally by 2050, representing 1 in 6 people
UN Population Division
Credentials Deliver Uneven Returns
The data on education ROI defies simple narratives. Neither "college is always worth it" nor "degrees don't matter" captures the reality.
48%
of young adults (25–34) in OECD countries now complete tertiary education, up from 27% in 2000
OECD, Education at a Glance, September 2025
OECD Earnings Premium
54%
more earnings for tertiary-educated workers vs. upper secondary across OECD countries
OECD, Education at a Glance, 2025
17%
less earnings for workers without upper secondary education vs. those with
OECD, Education at a Glance, 2025
Family Background Gap
26% of young adults from low-education family backgrounds attain tertiary education, compared to 70% from high-education family backgrounds
OECD, Education at a Glance, 2025
United States
12.5%
median ROI on a U.S. college degree, well above the 8% "sound investment" threshold
Federal Reserve Bank of New York, "Is College Still Worth It?" April 2025
41.8%
of recent U.S. college graduates are underemployed (Q3 2025), the highest since 2020
Federal Reserve Bank of New York, College Labor Market Tracker
Skills-Based Hiring
1 in 700 new hires at large U.S. firms are actually non-degree graduates, even after degree requirements were dropped
Harvard Business School and Burning Glass Institute, 2024
70M+ U.S. workers are "Skilled Through Alternative Routes" (STARs), a talent pool that degree-centric hiring filters frequently exclude
Opportunity@Work, 2024
The Flexibility Revolution
Remote and hybrid work has stabilized into a permanent feature of the labor market.
Current Work Arrangements (Remote-Capable Jobs)
51%
work hybrid
Gallup, Hybrid Work Indicators, 2025
28%
work fully remote
Gallup, Hybrid Work Indicators, 2025
21%
work fully on-site
Gallup, Hybrid Work Indicators, 2025
8% raise equivalent is how workers value hybrid work. 40% would accept a 5%+ pay cut to maintain flexibility.
WFH Research (Barrero, Bloom, Davis), Stanford University, 2025
Engagement by Work Location
| Work Arrangement |
Engagement Rate |
| Hybrid |
35% |
| Fully remote |
33% |
| In-office |
27% |
Gallup, State of the American Workplace, 2024
AI Is Changing Work, But Not How You Think
Success with AI depends more on organizational mindset than technological sophistication.
75%
of knowledge workers now use AI tools at work. 46% started in the last six months. 78% are bringing their own tools rather than waiting for employers.
Microsoft and LinkedIn, Work Trend Index, 2024
71%
of organizations use generative AI in at least one business function, up from 65% six months prior
McKinsey, "The State of AI," 2025
70%+
of today's human skills can be applied in both automatable and non-automatable work
McKinsey Global Institute, "Agents, robots, and us," November 25, 2025
+2 million net jobs from AI and information processing globally (11 million created, 9 million displaced in that sector)
World Economic Forum, Future of Jobs Report, January 2025
Learning Is the New Job Security
Most organizations still organize work around static job descriptions. The data shows this approach is failing.
$102.8 billion
spent on employee training in the U.S. in 2025, up 4.9% from $98 billion in 2024
Training Magazine, 2025 Training Industry Report, November 2025
The Execution Gap
85%
of employers globally plan to prioritize reskilling through 2030
WEF, Future of Jobs Report, 2025
<5%
of large-scale reskilling initiatives have advanced far enough to measure success, for the third consecutive year
LinkedIn Workplace Learning Report, 2025
94% of employees say they would stay longer at a company that invests in their development
LinkedIn Workplace Learning Report, 2024
The Youth Challenge
Young workers face distinct barriers to decent employment, particularly in developing economies.
~13%
global youth unemployment rate
ILO, World Employment and Social Outlook, 2025
21.7%
global NEET rate (not in employment, education, or training)
WEF, Future of Jobs Report, 2025
NEET Rates by Income Level
| Country Income Level |
NEET Rate |
| High-income economies |
10.1% |
| Upper-middle income economies |
17.3% |
| Lower-middle income economies |
25.9% |
| Low-income economies |
27.6% |
World Economic Forum, Future of Jobs Report, January 2025
Purpose Matters More Than Title
The data consistently shows that what workers want has shifted. Money is necessary but insufficient.
92%
of millennials say purpose is important to job satisfaction and wellbeing. For Gen Z, 89%.
Deloitte, Global Gen Z and Millennial Survey, 2025
The Generational Satisfaction Gap (U.S.)
57.4%
of U.S. workers under 25 are satisfied with their jobs, the only age group to see satisfaction decline in 2025
The Conference Board, Job Satisfaction Survey, 2025
72.4%
of U.S. workers 55+ are satisfied, a 15-point gap
The Conference Board, Job Satisfaction Survey, 2025
Sources
All statistics are drawn from primary research by authoritative organizations. Industry research from companies that collect proprietary data on their specific sectors is noted as such.
International Bodies
International Labour Organization (ILO), World Economic Forum, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), UN Population Division, World Bank, International Monetary Fund
Research Organizations
Gallup, Pew Research Center, The Conference Board, Harvard Business School, Burning Glass Institute
Corporate Research
McKinsey Global Institute, Deloitte, LinkedIn, Microsoft, Training Magazine
Government Agencies
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Federal Reserve Banks (New York, Atlanta), CDC National Center for Health Statistics, U.S. Census Bureau
Industry Research (proprietary data from sector specialists)
MBO Partners (independent workforce data), Upwork (freelance market data), Strada Education Foundation (education ROI), WFH Research at Stanford (remote work), Opportunity@Work (skills-based hiring)
Data reflects the global landscape as of late 2025.
