Introduction
There are many people that are qualified to get a job, but they are systematically prevented from doing so. This is a special group of skilled professionals that are jobless because of marginization in the job market. Being able to secure gainful employment should be an opportunity open to all based on merit, and not based on some discriminatory factors.
Unfortunately, unemployment due to social exclusion remains a reality today. The right to be employed is blocked from some people because of their gender, race, economic upbringing and other factors. There have been efforts to correct this situation. But, that it persists is proof that current efforts to right the wrong are not enough.
Web3 is providing innovative solutions to age-old problems in various sectors. It is capable of creating a fair job economy where people have equal access to employment opportunities without discriminations. Before I consider how that is possible. see two specific examples of exclusion in the job market.
Employment exclusion based on Gender
Some organizations and industry seem to prefer a certain gender in some roles. While there are no established technical reasons for this, it is such an unfortunate situation. Some of these industries that prefer man in specific roles usually turn down female applicants no matter their level of skill and expertise.
There are equally other sectors that prefer the female gender to fill a particular position. As such, they equally limit or totally prevent the male gender from accessing such job openings. Because of this, a gender might have the opportunity to get a job while the opposite gender is prevented from doing so.
Gender discrimination in the job market is a big issue that has prevented skill professionals from accessing job opportunities because of gender.
Employment exclusion based on race
Racism in the job market is real no matter how hard we try to pretend the problem does not exist. Especially when applying for a position overseas, sometimes the candidates race is the biggest consideration.
If an organization has a track history of avoiding applicants from a particular rice, this makes it hard for professionals from that group to access job opportunities. Sometimes, professionals in marginalized races are hired but they still face discrimination in the form of job benefits. They might receive smaller remuneration, or be prevented from accessing other job benefits that are available to workers from other races.
Racism in the job market is really an issue that needs to be addressed, otherwise more qualified professionals will remain unemployed or under-employed.
Web3 Solutions to exclusion in the job market
Web3 has the potential to facilitate inclusion in many sectors. Decentralization and community governance are some features of web3 that could be used decentralized tools for accessing job opportunities.
Consider the following solutions.
P2P Job markets
One solution to make inclusion in the job market possible is to build a marketplace where job applicants have direct access to jobs and employers. This removes the intermediaries like job listing organizations and centralized job markets where recruitment is based on pre-defined conditions.
A decentralized job market would facilitate an environment where job candidates are recruited based on skill and merit and not based on some discriminatory traits like gender and race. Such a market would not give applicants any preferences as we have them today. People are not hired based on who they know or where they come from. Instead, each candidate has an equal opportunity to both access the job opportunities and also have the opportunity to convince employers of their potential for excellence in the role.
Smart Contract for remote employment
Another feature of web3 that could be used to foster inclusion in the job market is smart contract contract. Again, smart contracts would work on P2P marketplaces where the job candidate connects directly with potential employers. A smart contract could be used to set up details remote jobs and benefits. With smart contracts, an organization could higher remote workers that will execute projects from their remote locations.
The full job role and description would be encoded into a smart contract. Skills or technical requirements would also be part of the contract. Other details might include the job duration, schedule, wages and other details. With these well set up in the smart contract, anyone could sign the contract from any location and take it up.
The smart contract would ensure that terms are fulfilled by the applicant before payment is released. But the main benefit here is that anyone that qualifies to the terms of the contract has the opportunity to apply and do the job. The smart contract does not ask about the applicants past job experience or professional qualifications. The smart contract is all about getting the job done and being rewarded. This is really cool for remote employment.
Cross-border payment
How does an employee in Africa receive their remuneration from a company or employee in Europe? Crypto payment makes that possible secure and super fast. This is another way web3 facilitates inclusion in the job market.
Unlike we have it today, crypto payments are really dependable means to make sure that workers receive their rewards in time. In today's job environment, some remote workers often loose part of their salary to foreign exchange. By the time they receive the pay in local currency, a big percentage of it has bee removed due to exchange rates and bank charges.
Web3 payments are dependable. Besides, it is feeless. That ensures that employers from around the globe pay the exact amount agreed in a smart contract and remote workers receive such without deductions from financial services providers or foreign exchange.
When designed as part of the smart contract, crypto payments are automatic. It means that the smart contract releases payment immediately the job is completed. In today's job environment, wages and salaries are delayed and that contributes to more economic hardship by workers.
Conclusion
There is terrible social exclusion in the job sector. Web3 has promised a decentralization of the job sector. It promises to give job opportunities to everyone no matter their race, gender or nationality. Web3 will enhance inclusion and give everyone that has employable skills or expertise the opportunity to access such without discrimination.