NEW YORK, July 7, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- A new national
survey developed by Burson-Marsteller, a global strategic communications
and public relations firm, and conducted by research firm PSB sheds
light on Americans' views about the current state of the economy
(with a focus on manufacturing) and their expectations for the
future.
According to "Making it in America: The View from America," only
42 percent of Americans with a high school education or less say
they have the right skills to succeed in the 21st
century, while 71 percent with a college education or more say they
do. When asked what emotion best describes their feeling about the
future of the U.S. economy, Americans with high school or less are
25 percent less likely to say they are optimistic than those with a
college education or more. And they are 50 percent more likely to
feel scared about the future of the U.S. economy than those with a
college education or more.
Education level also plays an important role in how Americans
feel about the future of the U.S. economy. Thirty-eight percent of
Americans with a college education or more think the American
economy is headed in the right direction compared to 30 percent of
those with a high school education or less. When it comes to job
security and the role of automation, only 14 percent of Americans
with a college education or more say a machine could replace their
job in five years, versus 30 percent with a high school education
or less.
However, most Americans are in agreement that business and
government should work together in strengthening the economy.
Fifty-seven percent of Americans say the government should play a
major role in strengthening the economy and 86 percent support tax
credits for companies that pay for workers to train in other, more
modern work skills. Sixty-one percent say the government should
promote job training and education programs for displaced workers
to address loss of jobs to automation and machine intelligence.
Twenty-two percent say the government should enact policies to
protect those jobs and 10 percent support an increase in corporate
taxes to fund programs for displaced workers.
The "Making it in America: The View from America" survey
conducted 1,500 interviews with the general population from
June 1-5, 2017. The margin of error
for the total sample is +/- 2.53 percent and larger for subgroups.
This survey builds off the June 2017
Executive Survey by McKinsey & Company, which surveyed 259 U.S.
business leaders representing the full range of regions,
industries, company sizes, functional specialties and tenures. The
"Making it in America: The View from America" findings were
discussed on a panel at the Aspen Ideas Festival on June 30, titled "Can We Still Make it in
America?" Moderated by New York Times
columnist Tom Friedman, the panel
included Don Baer, Worldwide Chair
and CEO, Burson-Marsteller; Zoe
Baird, President, the Markle Foundation; James Manyika, Senior Partner at McKinsey &
Company and Chairman of the McKinsey Global Institute; Senator
Mark Warner (D-VA) and Tom Wilson, Chairman and CEO of The Allstate
Corporation.
Other Key Findings:
- EDUCATION LEVEL MATTERS WHEN IT COMES TO AMERICANS' OUTLOOK
ON TECH Fifty-five percent of Americans with a college
education or more say technology will make overall employment
better five years from now versus 45 percent with a high school
education or less. Sixty-five percent with college or more and 55
percent with high school or less say technology will make job
satisfaction better five years from now. In addition, 57 percent of
Americans with college or more and 49 percent with high school or
less say technology will make wages/salaries better five years from
now.
- MORE EDUCATED AMERICANS AFFILIATE MORE CLOSELY WITH BUSINESS
LEADERS Fifty-two percent of business leaders believe the
high-tech industry is most likely to create jobs in the U.S. in the
next five years compared to 48 percent with a college education or
more and 37 percent with a high school education or less.
Fifty-eight percent of business leaders say spending more on
infrastructure is the public policy action that will most support
job creation in the U.S. compared to 31 percent with college or
more and just 15 percent for those with high school or less.
Furthermore, Americans with college or more are nearly twice as
likely as those with high school or less to agree with business
leaders (34 percent) that reading comprehension and critical
thinking are most important for success, at 23 percent and 13
percent, respectively.
- THE 2016 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION WAS DRIVEN BY EDUCATION
DIVIDE CNN exit poll findings show that in key election states
including Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, Americans with a college education
or more voted for former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton while those with a high school
education or less voted for Donald
Trump. In Michigan, 49
percent of those with high school or less voted for Trump while 51
percent of those with college or more voted for Clinton. In
Pennsylvania, 56 percent of those
with high school or less voted for Trump and 51 percent of those
with college or more voted for Clinton. In Wisconsin, 54 percent of those with high
school or less voted for Trump versus 56 percent of those with
college or more who voted for Clinton. This was not the case in
Ohio, where 52 percent of those
with high school or less voted for Trump while 42 percent of those
with college or more voted for Clinton.
- REGARDLESS OF EDUCATION LEVEL, AMERICANS TRUST COMPANIES BUT
DISTRUST BUSINESS LEADERS Sixty-one percent of all Americans
have an unfavorable view of business leaders and 73 percent say the
wage gap between workers and business leaders will grow in the next
five years. Yet, 59 percent of Americans say large companies have
more of a positive impact than the federal government does.
Interestingly, 96 percent of Americans are favorable towards small
businesses versus 54 percent for large companies.
"Our new survey, Making it in America: The View from America,
finds that despite their doubts about the current state of the
country and the economy, Americans are optimistic about the
future," said Baer. "The survey results suggest if business and
government work together to provide training and opportunity for
the jobs of the future, Americans believe they can succeed despite
current challenges."
Methodology
From June 1-5,
2017, PSB conducted 1,500 interviews with a General
Population Survey. The margin of error for the total sample
is +/- 2.53 percent and larger for subgroups. The data are weighted
to be nationally representative.
This survey builds off the June
2017 Executive Survey by McKinsey & Company, which
surveyed 259 U.S. business leaders representing the full range of
regions, industries, company sizes, functional specialties and
tenures.
About Burson-Marsteller
Burson-Marsteller, established in 1953, is a leading
global strategic communications and public relations firm. It
provides clients with strategic thinking and program execution
across a full range of public relations, public affairs, reputation
and crisis management, advertising and digital strategies. The
firm's seamless worldwide network consists of 73 offices and 85
affiliate offices, together operating in 110 countries across six
continents. Burson-Marsteller is a part of Young & Rubicam
Group, a subsidiary of WPP (NASDAQ: WPPGY), the world's leader in
communications services. For more information, please
visit www.burson-marsteller.com
About PSB
PSB, a member of Young & Rubicam Group
and the WPP Group, is a global research consultancy that delivers
custom, prescriptive strategy for blue-chip corporate, political
and entertainment clients. PSB's operations include over 200
consultants and a sophisticated in-house market research
infrastructure with global capabilities. PSB is headquarted in
Washington, D.C., with offices in
New York, Seattle, Los
Angeles, Denver,
London and Madrid. PSB gets To the Point, backing
actionable strategy with scientific-grade data to give you
competitive edge, no matter the business problem. More at
www.psbresearch.com.
For more information, including a presentation of the survey
results,
visit http://www.burson-marsteller.com/making-it-in-america-the-view-from-america
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SOURCE Burson-Marsteller