Positive Jobs Data, Blue-Collar Millennials, AI Deployment Gets Assist

Positive Jobs Data, Blue-Collar Millennials, AI Deployment Gets Assist

July 9, 2026 · 11 min · Season 6 · Episode 38

About this episode

The episode discusses positive job growth trends, the rise of blue-collar millennials in skilled trades, and Microsoft's investment in AI deployment.

Multiple sources show job growth trending upward, including the Paychex Small Business Employment Watch that showed a fourth consecutive month of improvement. This bodes well for businesses that had been feeling pressured by the labor market, says host Gene Marks. He also discusses the trend of Millennials snapping up skilled-trades businesses, and for many good reasons, including recurring cash flow and currently resistant to AI disruption. In AI news, Microsoft put $2.5 billion into a firm that helps with AI deployment and training on many AI models, some not even their own. Listen to the podcast. Topics: 00:00 – Introduction 00:20 – Paychex Small Business Employment Watch 03:37 – Blue-Collar Business Acquisitions 06:57 – Microsoft Invests in Helping AI Deployment 09:48 – Episode Wrap-up Additional Resources Paychex Small Business Employment Watch: https://bit.ly/paychex-sbew Meet Paychex: https://bit.ly/3VtM6bs DISCLAIMER:The information presented in this podcast, and that is further provided by the presenter, should not be considered legal or accounting advice, and should not substitute for legal, accounting, or other professional advice in which the facts and circumstances…

People in this episode

Host: Gene Marks

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Organizations: Paychex, Microsoft, Paychex Small Business Employment Watch, AI

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