Posted on 01/29/2007 11:27:14 AM PST by SirLinksalot
Alaska faces skilled-worker shortage
The state's pay premium, which drew outsiders in the 1970s, has dwindled to almost nothing.
ANCHORAGE, ALASKA
Union apprentices training to build their carpentry skills in this part of Alaska have a nickname for more seasoned co-workers they meet on job sites. "We call them the 'Geriatric Crew,' " says Clint Meyer, one of the 20- and 30-somethings working out of a union- operated training center in south Anchorage.
It's an apt description. While Alaska's economy has grown – and its construction business has blossomed – over the last two decades, the pool of skilled construction laborers has not. Now, so many tradesmen are nearing retirement age that the state is struggling simply to replace them. If building takes off, Alaska could face a worker shortfall similar to the 1970s when Americans from the Lower 48 flocked here to take advantage of high-paying jobs.
There's just one problem: Alaska's pay premium has all but disappeared in the past decade.
"We've become closer to average than we used to be," says Neal Fried, a state labor economist. Attractive jobs are plentiful elsewhere. "Look at Seattle. We used to get our workers from there. Now some here go there."
The graying skilled labor force is a national issue, economists say, but it is accentuated in Alaska, where aging baby boomers dominate demographics more than most states. That demographic bulge, particularly prevalent in construction and other blue-collar trades, is now nearing retirement.
"I keep pulling up the average age of our members, this huge aging, graying group, and they're two years younger than me," says John Palmatier, executive secretary/treasurer for the Alaska Regional Council of Carpenters. "Then I look in the mirror and there's this old guy looking back at me."
(Excerpt) Read more at csmonitor.com ...
Then the pay premium will re-appear. Of stuff that is not profitable at the premium wage rate won't get built.
More likely, some Democrat(ic) Congressman will insert a provision into some obscure bill allowing construction companies to import low-cost labor from American Samoa, or some such place.
ping
They can come in from Samoa anyway. More likely they'll come in from Mexico and depress wages, fill the schools, create needs for bilingual teachers, EMT's, etc.
Construction is one of the fields that's seeing a huge increase of illegal aliens. My neighbor, a self-employed roofer for 30 years, has begun to lose contracts to them. Of course, sometimes he gets hired to redo the work when the roof starts leaking and the originally hired company has disappeared. Look out, Alaska.
A few hundred thousand illegal Mexicans will "solve" this problem.
But it's too far to swim . . .
The illegals would have to traverse Canada to get to Alaska, unless they go by water (or air).
The Canadians might just say to them, "take off, eh!"
I have a 40 yr old friend that has been in construction ever since he started working. About 10 yrs ago here the pay sscale and contract prices started taking dumps. About 3 yrs ago he figured out 2 things:
1. he was working with nothing but illegals who didn't know jack and couldn't speak English
2. he could no longer make a decent wage, the pay scale kept going down whether it was wages or contract prices
The only people here who do not use illegals now are contractors who do insurance work and that is because most of the time the workers are working inside the home where families live and they can't/won't take the chance on anything happening. The insurance contracts are too lucrative to take chances.
The whole area has a skilled labor shortage, Below AK in BC they are scrambling for trades people... If I eve had to go back to BC I'd be working in construction, pipefitting/plumbing as that is in high demand. It also helps when you have family in the construction business.
Will never happen with our weather pattern, I had a group of legal Mex workers doing some work at my concrete plant 35 miles north of Anchorage, they absolutely refuse to work in subzero temps and shudder when they hear we get just a couple of hours of weak daylight in the winter, there is a reason why certain races populate certain parts of the planet. I agree its hard to find skilled workers but then again we just reached the peak of a building boom and the market is flooded with vacant new homes and our industry is really quite minimal other than tourism and fishing. The MSM as usual knows nothing about Alaska.
As a whole the people that live here prefer to keep the state from expanding, more people means less each individual gets from the yearly check of oil profits we call the Permanent Fund Dividend.
If they were legal, and actually wanted to live in the Alaskan climate, then I guess so.
Not from Samoa. Pelosi needs the Samoans to get low-wage processing for Starkist Tuna, which is owned by Del Monte, which is headquartered in her district and has a very major shareholder in Pelosi's husband.
Not mentioned, but one reason you'd likely have problems getting skilled workers to move up there is because Alaska has a reputation in the States for being the Land Without Women.
(J. Horton)
Way up north, (North To Alaska.)
Way up north, (North To Alaska.)
North to Alaska,
They're goin' North, the rush is on.
North to Alaska,
They're goin' North, the rush is on.
Big Sam left Seattle in the year of '92,
With George Pratt, his partner, and brother, Billy, too.
They crossed the Yukon River and found the bonanza gold.
Below that old white mountain just a little south-east of Nome.
Sam crossed the majestic mountains to the valleys far below.
He talked to his team of huskies as he mushed on through the snow.
With the northern lights a-running wild in the land of the midnight sun,
Yes, Sam McCord was a mighty man in the year of nineteen-one.
Where the river is winding,
Big nuggets they're finding.
North to Alaska,
They're goin' North, the rush is on.
Way up north, (North To Alaska.)
Way up north, (North To Alaska.)
North to Alaska,
They're goin' North, the rush is on.
North to Alaska,
They're goin' North, the rush is on.
George turned to Sam with his gold in his hand,
Said: "Sam you're a-lookin'at a lonely, lonely man.
"I'd trade all the gold that's buried in this land,
"For one small band of gold to place on sweet little Ginnie's hand.
"'Cos a man needs a woman to love him all the time.
"Remember, Sam, a true love is so hard to find.
"I'd build for my Ginnie, a honeymoon home.
"Below that old white mountain just a little south-east of Nome."
Where the river is winding,
Big nuggets they're finding.
North to Alaska,
They're goin' North, the rush is on.
North to Alaska,
They're goin' North, the rush is on.
Way up north, (North To Alaska.)
Way up north, (North To Alaska.)
Way up north, (North To Alaska.)
America faces a skilled worker shortage.
We are a little under the average, but at 48.3% female, we are much different than days of yore.
http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/02000.html
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