NEW YORK (AP) — Asia Thomas knew she was at a disadvantage. It had been 16 years since she quit a job at McDonald's to raise her kids. When she left, restaurants didn't have kiosks to take orders, people didn't use smartphones to pay, and job seekers did applications on paper.

"Things have changed," said Thomas, who lives in Baltimore. "And there were a lot of things I forgot."


Thomas, 44, was able to get a job at wholesale club B.J.'s for $12 an hour — but that was only after signing up for computer lessons and taking a class in retail basics like how to track inventory and handle issues like returns. That led her to another opportunity at a casino.


Getting a job as a store cashier or a sales assistant _ often an easy way into the economy for an unskilled worker _ used to be easy. Now, that path is getting much more complicated as employers demand higher-level skills. (May 30)


This has major consequences for workers without college degrees or vocational training trying to get an economic foothold. A decade ago, workers, especially young ones, could start as cashiers and move up to become store managers or even higher. But now, it's harder to even get in the door.

"The bottom may be coming out of the career ladder," said Burning Glass CEO Matt Sigelman.


"This phenomenon is creating more pressure on incomes at the lower end of the middle class and will push people down closer to and even below the poverty line," said Fred Crawford, senior vice chairman of consulting firm AlixPartners. "It will exacerbate the growing gap between the haves and have-nots."

These changes are being driven by companies' use of large amounts of data not available a generation ago. Supermarkets, for instance, use loyalty programs to better track customers' shopping habits. Clothing chains are now quickly reacting to the latest fashion trends, adjusting the merchandise on store shelves within days. That means front-line workers must do more.


"We are looking for workers who are not only friendly and passionate but people who are tech-savvy," said Marisa Velez, store director of DSW Designer Warehouse in New York's Union Square.


At DSW, Phoebe Li swiftly navigates the aisles stacked with boxes of shoes, seeing if customers need help while she scans an iPad to check on online inventory. The tablets DSW uses will soon be able to ring up a sale as well. "If I see someone bending down looking for a size, I ask them, "How is everything?'" said Li, 24, who has worked at DSW part-time since February.

"Customers are coming in with limited time," Velez said. "They're rushing. They want what they are looking for. We're able to expedite that through the app, through the iPad and making sure we are respecting their time while still capturing the sale."

Online home goods retailer Wayfair is increasingly looking for customer service and warehouse workers with problem-solving skills. Its employees help customers design a room, or they figure out how to pack a truck without damaging fragile items. So it's now recruiting gamers at places like Comic Con for those roles, said Liz Graham, who oversees customer service and sales.



The retail industry "relied on a largely unskilled entry labor force. Now, it's leaning more toward skilled people and competing with other sectors" like technology, said economist Frank Badillo, founder and director of research at MacroSavvy.



"I've learned to treat customers in a better way ... how to keep pace with them," Vixama said. At another class offered by a workplace group, she learned about spreadsheet programs like Excel and studied basic accounting.

Vixama just finished the second class, and shadowed a manager at CVS as part of that training. She's considering an entry-level job at a drugstore and mulling her options.

"I don't want to stay like this," she said. "I want to have better growth opportunities."


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