Any machinists in tha house? I’ve been one for 30+ years and I have a complement of related mfg skills including CNC Programming, 3D solid modeling, tooling design, QC support, Shop floor documentation, etc. I can tell everyone here first hand that the reason there’s a shortage of skilled labor in mfg is simple. Wages SUCK! I live in Northern Alabama, near Huntsville. Thats right! Aerospace mfg central. Way too many machine shops even right here want to pay a 10 year CNC machinist $15-$20 per hour and I am NOT exaggerating. There is NO reason to get into cutting edge skilled machining if the guy cant afford to pay a mortgage unless he works 10+ hours per week overtime. It didnt used to be this way.
That is the other component to wages and skilled labor, you have to be willing to go were the work and wage demand is.
A skilled labor in a location where there is a glut of that skill will definitely suffer from depressed wages.