I wonder if the writer investigated that beyond the fact that someone told him there was a shortage of welders. I can remember, not so long ago, when welding was a high paying craft and knew several who became welders. I wonder what the pay for skilled welders has done over the past thirty or forty years, if it's still good pay, or if the pay has been undercut by cheap immigrant workers, both legal and illegal.
All this article does is bemoan something, but presents little to explain what has actually happened to cause this shortage. Or maybe he's building another case for more foreign workers. And I seriously doubt that "negative media images" is the main cause of this shortage.
Plus to be a welder or a crane operator you have to join a UNION, and I’d rather eat my own turds and drink my own piss than join a stinking union.
Welding wages have been gutted by low wage illegals, just like all of the construction industry, and half a dozen other industries.
Back in the 70’s my sister and her boyfriend had just come off the Alaskan Pipeline as pipefitter welders and the new boom was nuke plants. I was about to graduate from HS so I checked in to it and decided to go to welding school that in those days was nationally known for turning out “slick” pipe welders. After graduating I went to Local Union of Plumbers & Steamfitters and went right to work. At that time in June of 1979 our base wage was $16.64/hr..
As much as I hated the union the additional level of training that we received was excellent if you applied yourself. Unfortunately not everyone did because afterall it was a union and all you had to really have to go to work was warm blood flowing through your veins. There in lay the problem, those with demonstrable skills making the same as those who couldn’t care less because the money was the same.
To answer your question about wages when I left the union in the 90’s we were up to $34/hour and now they are in the mid $40’s...