Democrat Angie Craig has joined other employers rejecting the “paper ceiling” blamed for limiting millions of workers.
(Bloomberg) — US Representative Angie Craig won’t require bachelor’s degrees for jobs in her legislative offices, becoming the latest employer to challenge a standard that has drawn criticism for holding the nation back from a full economic recovery.
Candidates will be evaluated based on work experience and training, said Craig, a Minnesota Democrat, who encouraged other members of Congress to follow suit.
“Nobody’s career trajectory should be predetermined by a piece of paper – it should be determined by their work ethic, experience and ability to do the job in front of them,” said Craig in a statement Friday.
Craig’s move comes amid a rise in public discussion of the so-called “paper ceiling,” which some see as an arbitrary prerequisite that has stunted economic mobility, at times disproportionately hampering people of color, veterans, or rural residents.
It may also be a first for Congress, as senior House staffers said they don’t recall any such announcements before, although technically, there is no requirement for congressional staffers to have degrees. Still, it’s likely their backgrounds reflect nationwide trends, given that nearly 70% of new jobs demand the documents.
Earlier: Bosses Can Beat the Tight Labor Market by Tearing the Paper Ceiling
Craig has been an advocate for expanding educational opportunities beyond traditional four-year colleges and universities. That has included her seeking more federal investment in career and technical education and workforce training, and expanding enrollment in apprenticeship programs. She already has on her staff a farmer without a degree working on agriculture policy, and a veteran who is doing related casework, a spokesperson said.
More than 70 million workers have developed job skills through military service or by attending community college or other training programs, according to research by Opportunity@Work, a group challenging degree requirements.
Negative stereotypes and hiring algorithms that screen out applicants without degrees have stunted their economic mobility, according to the group. Over the past 30 years, those without degrees lost access to good jobs and saw the wage gap between them and those with degrees double. Employees without a bachelor’s degree now make less on average than they did in 1976, adjusting for inflation, according to Opportunity@Work.
As for members of Congress themselves? According to a Pew Research Center analysis, at least nine in ten representatives and senators since the 1990s have graduated college.
In the current Congress, 94% of representatives and all but one senator hold at least a bachelor’s degree. The lone senator is Oklahoma Republican Markwayne Mullin, 45, a business owner who earned an associate degree from Oklahoma State University of Technology.
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