Thread: Factory Jobs Return, but Employers Find Skills Shortage

Factory Jobs Return, but Employers Find Skills Shortage

David Maxwell for The New York Times
Published: July 1, 2010

BEDFORD, Ohio — Factory owners have been adding jobs slowly but steadily since the beginning of the year, giving a lift to the fragile economic recovery. And because they laid off so many workers — more than two million since the end of 2007 — manufacturers now have a vast pool of people to choose from.

Yet some of these employers complain that they cannot fill their openings.
Plenty of people are applying for the jobs. The problem, the companies say, is a mismatch between the kind of skilled workers needed and the ranks of the unemployed.

Economists expect that Friday’s government employment report will show that manufacturers continued adding jobs last month, although the overall picture is likely to be bleak. With the government dismissing Census workers, more jobs might have been cut than added in June.

And concerns are growing that the recovery could be teetering, with some fresh signs of softer demand this week. A central index of consumer confidence dropped sharply in June, while auto sales declined from the previous month.

Pending home sales plunged by 30 percent in May from April as tax credits for home buyers expired. Fretting that global growth is slowing, investors have driven stock indexes in the United States down to their levels of last October, for losses as great as 8 percent for 2010.

As unlikely as it would seem against this backdrop, manufacturers who want to expand find that hiring is not always easy. During the recession, domestic manufacturers appear to have accelerated the long-term move toward greater automation, laying off more of their lowest-skilled workers and replacing them with cheaper labor abroad.

Now they are looking to hire people who can operate sophisticated computerized machinery, follow complex blueprints and demonstrate higher math proficiency than was previously required of the typical assembly line worker.

Makers of innovative products like advanced medical devices and wind turbines are among those growing quickly and looking to hire, and they too need higher skills.

“That’s where you’re seeing the pain point,â€

Imparting skills is easy. Companies used to do it all the time. Back in the 70s and 80s, companies who needed programmers and computer operators provided training. And made a roaring profit.

It is not hard to train people for manufacturing jobs. Companies use to do it all the time. And those jobs use to pay really good wages. Now we have to hear them whine how they cant find qualified workers. Give me a break. If they can bring in people from third world countries who dont speak english and train them to do the job....then they can train Americans. They just dont want to train Americans because they know where this is going.

Yep, they will have to abide by labor laws, pay work comp insurance, compensate those injured on the job, pay decent wages. Oh....and they will no longer be able to threaten their employees with deportation. OMG....they might UNIONIZE!!! Heaven forbid that their employees might finally get a piece of the pie.

Well...too bad. If they really cant figure out how to hire and train people then they will have to go out of business. Let their more competent competitors get their business. Employees should not be forced to subsidize their employer through low wages and no job protection. Let the incompetent employers sink. We will end up with the cream of the crop. Maybe once again we can have a quality country.

Now they just want a reason to bring in cheap labor from overseas in these cases. Corporations training individuals has been going on for many years as BetsyRoss said. Now they all want to complain they do not have enough or the applicants are not qalified

Originally Posted by BetsyRoss

Imparting skills is easy. Companies used to do it all the time. Back in the 70s and 80s, companies who needed programmers and computer operators provided training. And made a roaring profit.

They do still train employees. But they get the employees from cheap third world countries through visa programs or they hire illegals. Then they make the American worker train their replacement. Now they are complaining they cant find qualified people? What is wrong with training American workers? They have been training foreign workers all along.

Steaming load of BS.

Originally Posted by redpony353

Originally Posted by BetsyRoss

Imparting skills is easy. Companies used to do it all the time. Back in the 70s and 80s, companies who needed programmers and computer operators provided training. And made a roaring profit.

They do still train employees. But they get the employees from cheap third world countries through visa programs or they hire illegals. Then they make the American worker train their replacement. Now they are complaining they cant find qualified people? What is wrong with training American workers? They have been training foreign workers all along.

That's true and it's not hard to find the ads, often from bodyshops based in Edison NJ, offering free training followed by placement. Just not to American job seekers. Every see somebody snicker in an email? Try applying to one of these ads.

Very true guys. We still have laws in place to protect the American workers. Outside labor forces (foreigners) CAN NOT be hired to take American jobs,UNLESS the company can prove they can not find qualified American workers to fill the jobs. Some may offer NO BENEFITS or other unscrupulous practices,so the American citizens refuse to work for them.

Originally Posted by uniteasone

Very true guys. We still have laws in place to protect the American workers. Outside labor forces (foreigners) CAN NOT be hired to take American jobs,UNLESS the company can prove they can not find qualified American workers to fill the jobs. Some may offer NO BENEFITS or other unscrupulous practices,so the American citizens refuse to work for them.

Companies should be required to train people. They use to do this and they still made a fortune. If they dont want to hire American workers then they should move the company to a foreign country. At that time they will be considered a foreign company and TAXED. We can make everything we need right here....by and for Americans. Any company who wants to sell stuff to Americans and hires foreigners to to it, should be TAXED TO THE EYEBROWS.

Even if you have a college degree or a technical school training you still need to be trained by your new job. Looks like they want advanced college or tech school training only to pay $23 an hour? Doesn't a school bus driver in that area make similar? Are they unionized? Do they offer steady pay increases from that $23 per hour? How will the recent graduate pay off their loans on that wage and still be able to have a life?

The laws are just ink on paper. There is nothing to protect the US citizen who wants to work.