Leveling the Playing Field

Leveling the Playing Field 

For decades, employers used a college degree as a signal. It didn’t matter if a job actually required a degree. Employers used this “paper ceiling” to create a pointless hurdle that blocked people from well-paying jobs. We’re pushing back against this short-sightedness in Idaho. During the last legislative session, I was proud to co-sponsor House Bill 433, which established that Idaho state jobs can only require a postsecondary degree under certain conditions.

As of July 1, Idaho agencies can no longer use a college degree as an arbitrary filter to identify and select candidates for state jobs. Pursuing a skills-based approach to hiring means we’re focused on what you can do, not the paper that may hang on the wall. From apprenticeships to technical certifications, people now have access to the necessary training to handle many different jobs.

Nurses who work in our veterans’ facilities or the engineers who help design our roadways will continue to need the applicable college degrees and licenses. But as our economy shifts and the type of work changes, we must keep up and adapt. It means we stop using a college degree as an excuse to pass over someone who otherwise has the necessary skills and expertise.

Over 60% of American adults do not have a college degree. It’s foolish to assume these individuals cannot do work that is critical to our state. By adopting a standard emphasizing what people can do, we’re improving our ability to compete against other states and private employers who’ve also rethought the need for bachelor’s degrees. 

In 2024, Idaho joined 21 other states that reformed their hiring practices to embrace skills-based hiring. Dozens of private employers have already adopted a similar strategy. Since 2014, a recent study highlighted a “fourfold increase” in employers dropping the requirement for a degree from their job descriptions. The companies leading the change include Walmart, General Motors, Cigna, and ExxonMobil.

But the work doesn’t stop just because the job descriptions have changed. We must follow through with actions that lead to more individuals without degrees securing state jobs they have the skills to do. It means we must track and measure if we’re meeting our goal of putting expertise before degrees when possible.

Initial results from the private sector suggest a couple of things we need to watch. We can’t make a change in name only. We need to see that the best candidates fill Idaho’s state jobs. That means we should see a change in the total number of state employees with four-year degrees over time. I plan to work with other legislators during the upcoming session to identify the best way to see if we’re doing better. 

We have work to do in Idaho. I know we have Idahoans capable of doing it. We owe it to our friends and neighbors to continue improving our state at every level for those who live here.

Rep. Josh Wheeler represents District 35 (Bannock, Bear Lake, Bonneville, Caribou, and Teton Counties) in the Idaho House.