The publication America's New Deficit: The Shortage of Information Technology Workers, points out the gap between the increasing demands for IT workers and the apparent inability of college and universities to meet the demand. From within the industry, trade publication decry both the shortage of workers and the soaring salaries required to attract and retain IT specialist, the negative or inaccurate image of the industry (Skinner, 2000, p. 52-5).
One problem heard repeatedly is that there is a shortage of trained technicians. Nine out of ten U.S. manufacturers' survey complained of lack of qualified highly skilled workers. About sixty percent of four hundred human resources chiefs surveyed reported a shortage of skilled workers and managers. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that over the next ten years another 1.3 million high-tech job opening will be created (Malott, 1998, p. 30). A number of sources predict that sixty-five to seventy percent of tomorrow's workers will need one to three years of technical training beyond high school, but not necessarily a bachelor's degree. In fact, the current shortage of skilled workers recently prompted nineteen U.S. Senators to co-sponsor legislation that would relax immigration laws for foreigners who possess technical skills needed in this county (Daniels, 2000, p. 32-3).
There are two main reasons for shortage of skilled workers: the current communications revolution and the aging of the population. For over a decade, the nation has been in the midst of a communications revolution. Computers made it possible for vast amount of information made available and modified with a keystroke. Writing became a mater of screens and printers, and text became permanently flexible, always ready to be instantly changed. The very nature of work changed, with an increasing demand for workers who could master the new technologies and use them to conduct business that formerly did not require computers at all.
