The emergence of an information sector in the workforce of various countries is analyzed. The lack of commonality of these development patterns is demonstrated -- countries might follow different patterns, depending on: 1. the time of industrialization, 2. internal political, and economic conditions, and 3. their position within the international trade system. The concept of the information worker as defined in the research literature is explored, and the development paths of the information workforce in the US, UK, Australia, and Germany are identified. It is concluded that, although each country exhibits specific sectoral patterns of development, there appears to be a converging trend toward a unifying path shared by all industrialized nations. Comparative data on the size of the information workforce in developing countries, including Venezuela, Argentina, and Tunisia, are analyzed in order to assert the applicability of this conclusion to the Third World. It is concluded that the growth pattern of this workforce differs according to each country.
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