One of St. Louis’ biggest industries continues to see high demand for “opportunity occupations,” or jobs that require little to no higher education but pays above the regional median wage, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis researcher Nicole Summers-Gabr says. Big gaps in the healthcare industry for entry level, specialized jobs means there are a large number of opportunities, nationally, for employment in sectors that could stand to lift some people out of poverty.
“These are jobs that often come with separate benefits, such as retirement and health insurance,” she said. “For young adults that are interested in continuing careers that might give them a stable livelihood but don’t require a lot of investment in terms of schooling—or for people who are interested in re-skilling—opportunity occupations are a really interesting pathway.”
Summers-Gabr presented her most recent findings on opportunity occupations, and the implementation of artificial intelligence in hospitals, at the Federal Reserve on Tuesday, joined by SSM Health chief community health officer and former St. Louis COVID czar Alexander Garza, along with other health leaders…