You are correct.
When you interview people even for a grunt job, the degree person is more likely to be hired, the reasoning (even thought it maybe flawed) is that is shows the person can start and complete something.
When I was interviewing, I found it a ridiculous premiss. Although a person with AA, is a good bet, someone with a masters is not going to stay in a grunt job.
One of the most useless things on the face of the planet is a city born and raised collage grad doing a grunt job.
If you don’t keep your eye on them every minute they will get themselves or someone else hurt or killed.
Most can’t or wont learn.
Every day it’s something else they are doing that an uneducated kid from the country would know not to do.