Posted on 03/18/2012 8:37:41 AM PDT by RoosterRedux
As millions of young Americans struggle to land jobs, students in manufacturing trade schools are sitting in a sweet spot. They're being hired even before they graduate.
Two weeks ago, students from the manufacturing program in Chicago's Wilbur Wright-Humboldt Park vocational college attended a local job fair.
"Five of our students were hired in just one day," said lead instructor Bryant Redd. The new hires are from a class of 41 students who are still four months away from completing a nine-month advanced certification program in computerized numerical control (CNC) machining. In the program, students go beyond basic machining with classes in computer design, machine shop technology and machine shop math.
Manufacturers in the Chicago area are busier than ever lately, and they're "begging" for more workers trained in advanced manufacturing skills like CNC machining, said Redd.
It's not just in Chicago. Factory work has picked up considerably nationwide, making skilled workers a valuable commodity, said Marc Smierciak, associate dean of instruction at the vocational college.
(Excerpt) Read more at money.cnn.com ...
As with many things in life, it depends on location. In the south, excluding Florida cities, you are going to make minimum wage being a janitor and maybe $10/hr. cleaning house if you do it privately. If you are a maid at a motel/hotel, you will make maybe slightly more than minimum wage.
I talked to a lot of people in resort areas in SW Montana last month, and there is nothing paying $20 anywhere. Met a young lady with an engineering degree waiting tables, and several young men making $12 at a ski resort, that came to the area with their wives who are teaching.
If I remember correctly, I was still an apprentice when I realized architects and engineers needed to be working in the field at least 5 years before they should ever be allowed to design or draw something.
“having a ‘working with your hands’ skill has been something our society has been losing, to our detriment.”
And do you know why that happened?
Because “working with your hands” IE: a trade,or a SKILL became looked down upon.
For love or money I could never figure out why that was.
Any half wit can graduate college if all they can do is read and write.
But to have an actual marketable SKILL takes hard work, talent, practice AND brains.
“To qualify for a UAW Journeymans card,”
Who the hell said anything about working for a damned union?
I agree with your comment(s). “Back in the day”, the country was largely agricultural. It was a big deal for someone to get ‘off the farm’ and go to college. Not that many folks could do it so those that could were looked up to and respected because they had this higher level of education. As time progressed, college became the norm as opposed to the exception ..... and it began to become the standard for getting a good job while the ‘trades’ slipped to the wayside.
Being ‘smart’ has nothing to do with book learning, in my opinion and from my experience as a supervisor for many years. What I find grossly lacking is ‘common sense’ plus an ability to think for ones self, to figure things out, to be self-sufficient, all of those things that my parents had to be to survive life on the farm when growing up .... both did go on in later years (not straight out of high school), with much sacrifice and hard work, to get through college and attain master’s degrees, dad in engineering, mom in teaching. The difference is that both worked their way through school and they retained the values and skills they grew up with on the farm .... something that just doesn’t happen in this day and age.
Congrats for getting your hands dirty at a young age and learning some skills. Yes, it's sad that lots of boys grow without learning skills. My younger daughter helped me build a couple tool sheds, and helped in remodeling a couple rooms. She got quite good at putting up and mudding drywall. While attending her university, she got a job fixing up the university dormitories (over a dozen buildings) for good pay.
She knows more than her husband about remodeling, and after marrying she remodeled his house (including totally gutting and rebuilding the bathroom) with her own hands before they sold it. It sold within a few days of showing. So not only boys can gain something by learning blue collar skills.
I'm not AGAINST liberal arts degrees - I have one myself. But I also had the forsight to minor in comp sci, which was enough to get me in the door 20 years ago.
I only mentioned the tool and die trade and apprenticeships as an example of one direction a person can go that uses CNC applications and that comes from my experience from working in HR for a Tier 1 auto manufacturer. Actually, it was a confusing and bad example.
Let me try to simplify the gist of the article. It's like me teaching you how to drive then promising you a job as a mechanic in an auto dealership. What I don't tell you is that you will be the guy doing the oil changes.
Learning how to operate a CNC will not get you a high paying job, in fact, it probably won't get you a job at all. That's because a CNC is merely a tool used in parts machining. Other tools you need in your belt to promote your employability are the ability to read blueprints as I stated before and possibly training in CAD CAM.........It's merely the first step in the right direction.
From my personal experience in having to hire skilled trades people for my plant, the number one trade we were most likely looking for were electricians.
If I had a kid who was halfway intelligent but too lazy to go to college and obtain a directionless Bachelors degree in nothing, and he enjoyed using his head and working with his hands, I would point him in the direction of becoming an electrician.
During the process, he of course would be required to take trade courses, likely at a community college, but he could also (hopefully) find a job with private electrical contractors who in good times are always looking for help. He would likely be doing the grunt work but also learning the trade.
There is no lack of demand for electricians in this country, either in the manufacturing sector or the private sector and they are the tradesmen making the top dollar.
When I lost my 35 year job back in Nov. of 2006, I drew unemployment for a year while searching for a job which I never could find. (I'm in the suburbs of Detroit, my company was sold and the plant was closed down)
If I had wanted to apply for an extension, the MESC was willing to "retrain" me but since I had scored well on their aptitude test they offered to send me back to college to complete my bachelor degree. That would have required I attend classes on a full time basis.
When that offer was made, I was then 57 years old. That meant that the state was going to pay for maybe two more years of college, at which time I would have acquired my degree at the age of 59.
If an employer wasn't willing to hire me with 35 years of HR experience with a Tier-1 supplier, there is no way in heck anyone would hire me at the age of 59 or 60 knowing full well I would likely retire shortly thereafter.
I turned down the Michigan Employment Security Commission (MESC) offer and contacted the representative of my closed company and told them to start my pension.
That was MY personal experience. I have several other friends who were in the skilled trades and up in age who lost their jobs several years ago and they are going thru the useless process of job retraining.
There comes a point in time where one's age and the investment in their homes makes it impossible for them to sell and relocate (if they can find a job).
And I think trades are hot again because, in a time of great unemployment and high student debt, they pay handsomely and are in great demand.
Being able to afford to eat is always “cool.”
I merely used that as an example I am personally familiar with, I had no intentions of offending anyone, ESPECIALLY YOU. Next time I'll check with you first before I make any comments......Is that ok with you?
Take your head out of your ass before you suffocate..
One of our sons who gives me fits due to his academic apathy, is preparing himself for a great future in auto mechanics or even welding. His high school has a ton of tech classes that earn dual credit in the community college. It was the right path for him and will pay off immediately.
Our kids did their history from readings at home, and some of their English and Literature, but took English Composition, and the hard sciences that required labs at our local Community College. It was a double blessing, because they got both high school AND college credit for their courses.
We have one of those too. His only interests are wrecking cars and girls.
Look into North Dakota. Lots of work for welders, and just about everything else. It is a boom town, so conditions will be different than in a settled industry, but very profitable.
Thankfully, this particular son is more interested in repairing cars! He has always been interested in fixing things. He also likes to make things like tools and other useful items. As for girls, son does not go out of his way to pursue girls, but they sure do pursue him. It is a concern.
Good for him! I wish him much success.
The jobs tide threatens an American industrial tsunami (John Ratzenberger)
Free Republic link
Also, at 19:20 in the video below, Mike Rowe briefly talks about declining trade school enrollment and how that is/will affect us:
Dirty Jobs' Mike Rowe on Lamb Castration, PETA, and American Labor
Link to You Tube Video
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