After watching the video clip from The Corporation, consider that labor is a derived demand. What forces are at work demanding low-skilled labor in the developing world? What could a country do to improve the types of skills demanded of its labor? Wage rates vary greatly from country to country. When wages are high, businesses look to outsource their manufacturing and call centers in other countries where the wage rates are lower to maximize their profits. This leads to unemployment in the country that is outsourcing work to another country.

For this discussion question use two paragraphs, a) and b). For paragraph a), discuss what causes the demand for low-skilled labor in the developing world. Do these workers make a wage that raises their standard of living or are they as bad off as before the outsourcing? For paragraph b), talk about what the governments of these countries can do to improve the skill sets of their workers to meet the challenges of tomorrow. Pick a country (each student must pick a different country) and explain what that country is doing to position their workers for jobs of the future.