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There is scepticism towards the idea that education and training provide the key to competitive national advantage. In light of the destruction of many good jobs and their replacement by unstable and mediocre jobs, the promise might lead people nowhere. The primary concern expressed in this paper is at the readiness of many employers to invest in technology in order to displace human labour. A second factor is that current management theories actively encourage companies to embark on organisational change as part of a strategy to cut costs. A third consideration in the downsizing of the labour force has been the dismantling of the system of collective bargaining. The result is a growing polarisation between a minority of occupations which rely on innovative uses of knowledge and the mass of jobs which have seen the de-skilling of their occupants.