Employers, hire more people without college degrees, says the New York Times

Do employers require too many college degrees from applicants?

The New York Times now thinks so. An editorial today — not from a single author, but from the paper’s entire editorial board — calls on employers to be more open to would-be workers without higher education credentials.

Let me walk you through the argument, in part because it’s behind a paywall, and also because the points it makes are significant.

The editorial begins by noting — accurately — that the American economy often punishes people for not having any college credentials. “[T]he earnings gap between those with a college education and those without one has never been wider.” The column connects this with rising higher ed prices. “[T]he cost of college spirals upward, putting it out of reach for many.”

In response, employers should reduce reliance on degrees and instead be more open to those without them. The Times casts this as a humane, humanitarian gesture, one which:

demonstrates both good policy and good leadership, representing a concrete change in hiring philosophy that stops reducing people to a credential and conveys that everyone — college-educated or not — has experience and worth that employers should consider.

The editorial then adds the recent low unemployment level and tight labor market as a reason. “Public and private employers have been struggling to find qualified…