A machine took my tech job, so I became blue collar
Douglass is one of nearly 250,000 tech workers who have been laid off in the United States since the start of last year. Artificial intelligence and cost-cutting are wreaking havoc in an industry previously considered best equipped to cope with technological advancement.
Software engineers, whose area of study was once seen as a sure-fire path to a reliable six-figure income, have been particularly affected. Instead of trying to stay in the industry, Douglass decided to follow her creative passion: welding.
She is not alone. Many former tech workers are turning to traditional blue-collar jobs as a fallback option. The Times spoke to three of them.
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