In very few jobs do you actually NEED a degree to be able to do the job, in most cases a degree is just a certificate showing you can apply yourself and work reasonably hard. In those cases I think it's unfair on those without a degree that are more than capable of doing the job because they often get overlooked. However there are some jobs (including mine) which without a degree you wouldn't have the knowledge to do the job, the company I work for simply won't look at applications from people without a bachelors and masters in the specific field.
There's a lot of truth in that. Many jobs, even those which appear to be quite high power, do require a great deal of fairly mundane and repetitive work. I have supervised several students doing post graduate research and one of the first things I stress to them is that PhDs and MScs depend much more on determination and "stickability" than on brilliant intellect. Common sense is priceless.
