Free Republic

Blue collar no more: Skilled auto technicians are in high demand The tight labor market can be a boon for blue-collar workers: They are more likely to find good-paying jobs and experience rapid wage growth. More employers are trying to tackle the aversion to manual labor jobs by offering workers higher salaries, tuition reimbursement and apprenticeship programs. Technology is also transforming blue-collar workplaces, making more advanced skills in demand.... Across the country there are more drivers on the road, and many of them hanging on to their vehicles longer than ever. That means workers like Michael Gerhart are in demand....

WASHINGTON, June 12, 2007 – For prosthetic technician Jared Scott McClure, it’s all about the “pull.” Walter Reed Army Medical Center prosthetic technician Jared Scott McClure works to remove the test socket from the plaster cast of a patient’s residual limb. How well he does his job determines the fit and function of the permanent socket, and, ultimately, how well the servicemember performs with their prosthetic. Defense Dept. photo by Fred W. Baker III  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. He’s referring to the process in which he pulls a hot sheet of plastic over the plaster mold of...

Marcus Kabel, BENTONVILLE, Ark. - Wal-Mart's normally low-profile security efforts were thrust into the limelight Wednesday when a fired technician alleged he had been part of a large surveillance operation that spied on company workers, critics, vendors and consultants. The company defended its security practices. The world's largest retailer declined to comment on specific allegations made by 19-year veteran Bruce Gabbard to the Wall Street Journal in a report published Wednesday. Wal-Mart reiterated that it had fired Gabbard, 44, and his supervisor last month for violating company policy by recording phone calls and intercepting pager messages.

Two years later, the FBI put out an urgent all-points bulletin for Shukrijumah, depicting him as one of al-Qaida's most well-trained, intelligent and deadly operatives. He was described as the ultimate "sleeper agent," intent on attacking the United States, possibly with weapons of mass destruction. Law enforcement officials and terrorism experts now believe Shukrijumah is one of a handful of young, street-smart leaders of al-Qaida handpicked by Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, the mastermind of the Sept. 11 attacks, to keep the terrorist network alive and humming in the face of U.S.-led efforts to unravel it.

Fellow FReepers... I'm looking for some info here. I'm going to be 18 soon and, next summer, I'd like to serve as a voluteer EMT with the local ambulance corps. (After 9/11 I became very dedicated to the notion of helping others, specifically in emergency situations.) If there's anyone with general info on the TRAINING to become an EMT (basic level) or, more specifically, an EMT in New York state, please reply to me. I basically want to know how the courses are broken down (they're provided by the ambulance corps I think)... are they done once a week? Twice...