People, Positions and Places

Abstract

We’re teetering on the abyss of mass unemployment, right? Not really. It depends who you are, what you can do and where you live. Consider this: according to the European Union, member states require something in the region of 700,000 computer literate workers by 2015. These people — to quote a report from the Brussels-based lobby group Think Young,¹ — “appear to be missing.” The word “missing” is a euphemism for “shortage.” Nobody worked out ahead of time that these people might be needed in this digital world of ours and consequently they never got trained. It’s interesting to talk with IT professionals who’ll tell you ruefully that even today — when the computer, the tablet and the iPhone are ubiquitous bits of kit — there is very little computer programming taught in schools. All the majority of school and college leavers seem capable of doing is downloading apps and using already programmed software.