Challenges for Higher Education Graduates in the Post-Pandemic Labor Market

Abstract

The Covid-19 pandemic has brought widespread disruption to labor markets around the world. The pandemic has led to a dramatic shift in expected skill requirements, and it has forced people to acquire new demanded skills, including digital skills, to succeed in the workplace or find a job. Hence, the competition of higher education graduates in the labor market is now changing shape. Accordingly, young workers (15–24 years old) have a greater risk than older ones of being pushed out of the labor market since the current situation shows that higher education graduates do not have enough high-level digital skills in many countries. Although younger adults with a higher education degree are less likely to be unemployed than other educated adults, it is obvious the digital transformation in the workplace might affect them negatively if they cannot update their skills for the post-pandemic world.