BULLCRAP. I know far too many out of work experienced roofers, siders, and other construction workers to believe that in the least. Many of them used to work with my husband, but he saw what was happening and changed careers 10 years ago after 25 years in construction.
Blame the aforementioned welfare for that. There are plenty of American poor that are happier sitting down than working.
I don't disagree with that. So I guess we need to change our welfare laws to do away with the problem, don't you?
A close friend of mine recently had to go back to work because her husband had a heart attack and they have no health insurance through his job. They have 2 children under the age of 10 and she has been a stay at home mom. She got her old job back, in a chicken processing plant, but even though she had previously worked there she went through all kinds of scrutiny to make sure of her legal status.
More than 300 people applied for something like 25 jobs, and those were just the eligible citizens or legals. I live in a rather poor county with a population of less than or about 40,000. Line work at a poultry processing plant is far from glamorous, in fact it is a rather nasty job. So please, don't get on your high horse about jobs that Americans won't do. For a fact I do know better.
I am sure that there are localized variables. I have seen it here as well but it does not change the fact that unemployment is at an historical low. I too have friends, ones with businesses that are screaming for both skilled and semi skilled labor especially on the coast. Where are the job seekers? The contracts lay open and they turn to the ones who come looking so they too can get paid.
I will grant that at the national level construction has been the most impacted industry. I don’t have numbers but I can see that.
Yes indeed we need to trash welfare except for real need and also lock down the boarders so we never face these choices again.
Last thing, no high horse. I have many good friends who work in plants and industrial settings doing some of the hardest jobs. But in a lot of areas finding Americans with that work ethic is getting tough. Where in your area you have 300 applying for 25 slots, they will have 10 apply for 30. Or even worse they do have enough but after the first week half no longer show up. It truly is a strange world right now.