New Collar Jobs: The Latest Jargon Trend
Translated from German, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.
At a glance
- The term "new collar jobs" is emerging, focusing on skills and learning ability rather than formal qualifications.
- This concept moves away from traditional classifications like white-collar and blue-collar jobs.
- The column critiques the trend of creating new jargon for evolving job market concepts.
The latest buzzword in the management and business world is "new collar jobs," a term coined by those adept at crafting jargon for every minor trend. These individuals are described as "word jugglers with a special collar size."
These are word jugglers with a special collar size. Those who invent a term for every little trend.
This new classification emphasizes skills and practical abilities over formal qualifications or educational background. The "new collar" is metaphorically woven from a willingness to learn and the capacity to implement new knowledge. This approach aims to shift the focus from the traditional white-collar (office workers) and blue-collar (manual laborers) distinctions, which have also been expanded to include other colors like gray, pink, red, and brown.
The new collar is woven from a willingness to learn and the ability to implement.
While the article acknowledges that collar distinctions don't inherently make one job better or worse, it playfully suggests that collars offer a sense of comfort, allowing one to "open the top button and take a breather" when feeling constricted. The piece, a "Sprechblase" (speech bubble) column by Michael Kรถttritsch, head of the Management & Career section at "Die Presse," weekly dissects and scrutinizes buzzwords and phrases from the business lexicon.
The classification by collar has its advantages: if it gets too tight, you can open the top button and take a breather.
Originally published by Die Presse in German. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.