Shortage of Skilled Trade Workers

[Armistead]

I hear so much news about unemployment. Why visiting my father in Charlotte NC, read in the paper that building was slowing from a simple lack of skilled trade workers. If fact, over 3000 skilled trade jobs needed to be filled there alone. The strange fact, studies stated there were 1000's of skilled trade workers sitting at home not applying for the jobs. getting unemployment, food stamps, etc. I was shocked to find this issue existed in many states, incuding Michigan.

Course many factors are involved. One complaint is wages have decreased year after year. If builders/manufacts. really wanted to fill these jobs, they would increase wages/benefits. In the last 3 years, CEO's and corporate managers wages have increased 40%, why the average worker wages have decreased 12-20%. A bigger issue, the youth of America simply don't want to do these jobs. Many of these jobs were done by illegals who are now scared to fill them as before.

Nothing wrong with a skilled trade. I worked with my hands for 12 years before I became a pencil pusher.

[August]

Nothing wrong with it at all. A man gets a lot of satisfaction from building things. But it is hard dirty work which doesn't pay well. It's also not regular enough and the housing bubble pretty much killed job opportunity for a couple of years which is time enough for a skills gap to develop.

All the flea markets around here in the past few years have tons of used tradesman tools. Sad to see really.

[Jimbuna]

Sadly replicated here in the UK and much of Europe I suspect.

All my engineering equipment is stored in my garage but I'm simply too old to do that kind of work now.

[Herr-Berbunch]

Originally Posted by Jimbuna

All my engineering equipment is stored in my garage but I'm simply too old to do that kind of work now.

Flog it, buy some more diecast.

Sadly I think this is very much reflected around most of the western world. The ethics of working hard are disappearing, people think the world owes them a living for doing nothing.

[AVGWarhawk]

Between you, me and the lamp post, a skilled trade job for me was less stressful than my current pencil pushing job. I was a automobile technician for 12 years. Never once did a car yell at me then hang up.

[Schroeder]

Originally Posted by Herr-Berbunch

The ethics of working hard are disappearing, people think the world owes them a living for doing nothing.

There's another thing. The ethics of treating your employees fairly are disappearing too.
The fat cats haul in the money while the worker doesn't know how to pay his bills from his full time job. Temporary employment only that gives you zero security to plan your life...
It's not just the evil lazy workers. It's a problem from both sides.

[Armistead]

Originally Posted by Schroeder

There's another thing. The ethics of treating your employees fairly are disappearing too.
The fat cats haul in the money while the worker doesn't know how to pay his bills from his full time job. Temporary employment only that gives you zero security to plan your life...
It's not just the evil lazy workers. It's a problem from both sides.

A good friend of mine was a brick layer foreman in the 90's, made $21 per hour then, not bad in the south. Now, he says that same job pays about $16 per hour or less.

[Ducimus]

Pull up a chair, I have a story to relate, and it's my father's story.

My Dad started working as a machinist in the 70's. As a kid growing up, i remember a few things distinctly. Him going to work with a United Steel Workers of America T shirt, and a lunch box. What exactly did my dad do? He worked in several departments within this company over the course of my life time, but the product itself was high speed machines, that sealed the lids of can's, with the product already in them.

Ever watch "Modern Marvels" on the history channel and they show some food packing place from soda, to canned corn with those bottles or cans moving through these machines at a high rate of speed, being packed up and off to a warehouse floor? That's what my Dad built. Those machines, and they made them from scratch.

My father's worked for this one company for at least all my 39 years on this planet. He started in "assembly", and worked his way to Foreman. This company had all the things that you associate with classic Americana. Company picnics, and retirement plans. Not 401K's. Once my dad crossed from being a Union Man to a company man, he carried with him the same work ethic he carried his entire life. The sad truth is that something has changed over the generations. The people who were in the United Steel workers while my dad was in the union, are not the same people today. Good people with strong work ethic nowadays, are hard to find.

But there's more to it then a generational degration of work ethic. But also of management ethic. Cause and effect? I don't think so. It's simple greed.

Almost 10 years ago. my father's company was bought out by some big conglomerate in Michigan i believe it is. Since that time, they have steadily dismantled my fathers work place. Parts they used to make in house, are now being outsourced. Machines they used to make, they no longer are. They have been replacing skilled craftsman, with cheap unskilled labor, and the end product is suffering for it. Companies that went with my dads company for years are now shifting their gaze elsewhere because the big corporate is clueless.

The short version of this sad story of layoffs, closed factories, livelyhoods lost, is there is nobody replacing craftsman like my father. There are no apprenticeship programs, and 40+ years of machining experience not being passed down. My father right now, is the last of a breed, and is extremly valuable to this company. So valuable they are spending 2000 dollars in travel expenses just to fly my dad to michigan every two weeks. Right now he's working two weeks on, and then flys home to calilfornia for 1 week. Then they pay to fly him out again. They are using him to try and train people to do individual tasks in a short time period. Trying to cram 40+ years worth of experience into a few weeks of training just isn't going to happen. These people are absolutely clueless. Fabricating a part that should only take 3 days, takes these people 3 weeks.

My dad is close to retirement, which is locked in and they can't take that away from him. Once he retires, a vast amount of knowledge, and experience, will go with him, and it won't be replaced. He is without exaggeration, the last of a breed.

I do not think my dad's story is an isolated incident, but one that has been happening all over, and one that will have dire effects for our country in the future.

[em2nought]

It's not just skilled workers, there's a shortage of anyone willing to work period. Part of why I've started to work more, and plan my exit strategy. The country is lost, time to get on the Mayflower. Might as well rename the USA to Detroit right now.

[Wolferz]

Where ya gonna go em2?

[em2nought]

Originally Posted by Wolferz

Where ya gonna go em2?

Not sure yet. Thailand wasn't bad, except for the squatty potty.

[the_tyrant]

Originally Posted by em2nought

Not sure yet. Thailand wasn't bad, except for the squatty potty.

+1 for Bangkok, Great place, great food (a bit spicy though), great people, low prices.

I just feel uncomfortable near the ladyboys, and they appear in droves at every major convention.

[Mittelwaechter]

There is a shortage of workers who work for 50% of the regular wage. That's the only problem.
It shall commonly be solved with the imigration of foreign workers, who are used to get only 15% of the regular wage at home.

More and more automatization frees more and more workers. They are a fantastic stock to frighten those with a job. We are encouraged to work harder to make our own jobs obsolete.

Globalization puts our workers in direct competition with the Chinese worker traveling from job to job - even abroad - for a few cents the hour.
This ensures the overproportional gain of wealth for a few and the suffer for thousands.

It's called capitalism - our western religion. It's about the accumulation of money for a few - not the accumulation of wealth for the people.