Skill Economies Address the Supply Chain Squeeze

Some economists (e.g., MacDonald, Hoppe, and Newton, 2018; Hamilton et al., 2021; McFadden, Njuki, and Griffin, 2023; Lee et al., 2024) question why we are witnessing a decades-long disconnect between the adoption of labor-sparing technology and application of precision agriculture (PA), artificial intelligence (AI) tools, and big data analysis. We begin exploring answers where Lloyd Fisher picked up in 1951 and proceed with the necessary conditions to move “the structureless market” into a market that is characterized by the skills of an organized workforce. In this article, we propose avenues of exploration where economists and economic principles may lead research efforts that identify laborsparing, profitable, solutions that will be maximize benefits (not limited to wages) for the workforce and likewise incentivize adoption by U.S. producers.