Behind engineer 'shortage': Employers are choosy

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette ^ | Wednesday, November 16, 2005 | Sharon Begley

[A. Pole]

Many companies say they're facing an increasingly severe shortage of engineers. It's so bad, some executives say, that Congress must act to boost funding for engineering education.

Yet unemployed engineers say there's actually a big surplus. "No one I know who has looked at the data with an open mind has been able to find any sign of a current shortage," says demographer Michael Teitelbaum of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

[...]

Within two weeks, Mr. Carver and a colleague at the Hudson Highland Group had collected more than 200 resumes. They immediately eliminated just over 100 people who didn't have the required bachelor of science degree, even though many had the kind of job experience the company wanted. A further 65 or so then fell out of the running. Some were deemed overqualified. Others lacked experience with the proper manufacturing software.

[...]

"Companies are looking for a five-pound butterfly. Not finding them doesn't mean there's a shortage of butterflies," says Richard Tax, president of the American Engineering Association, which campaigns to prevent losses of engineering jobs.

[...]

Under the H-1B temporary work visa program, U.S. employers are permitted to hire foreign nationals with knowledge and skills deemed to be in short supply.

[...]

Then came the deal-breaker. Wabtec would only consider candidates who had experience with Pro/Engineer Wildfire, a new 3-D computer-aided design software package, not an earlier package called 2000i.

"The basic difference between Wildfire and 2000i is not that significant," says Mr. Sylvester. "I say smart people can learn sister applications, but there is reluctance among hiring managers to see that.

[...]

[A. Pole]

Wabtec would only consider candidates who had experience with Pro/Engineer Wildfire, [...] not an earlier package called 2000i.

No fear, there are thousands of engineers in China and India who have several years of experience in working with Pro/Engineer Wildfire. Bring them on!

[fooman]

ping

[luckystarmom]

And they make a lot less money than the typical US engineer! WooHoo!

[the gillman@blacklagoon.com]

Why do we need engineers anyway?

They're as useless as making steel, or manufacturing things, highly overrated. Pizza delivery, now that's got a future!

[Rockitz]

Engineers, in general, are very critical people and so this story is no surprise. Sadly, good managers in the engineering field are supremely rare. No one can do the job better than the manager and their people skills are often nonexistent.

[Willie Green]

"The basic difference between Wildfire and 2000i is not that significant," says Mr. Sylvester. "I say smart people can learn sister applications, but there is reluctance among hiring managers to see that.

This happens most frequently with "hiring managers" who are themselves computer illiterate. IOw -- dumbed-down, paper-shuffling corporate bureaucrats who don't know their own arse from a hole in the ground.

[jveritas]

BS. Any engineer on H1B visa who work in the US will make same salaries as their American counterpart and sometimes they make more.

[2banana]

The visas are valid for up to six years and are currently capped at 65,000 per year. Business groups, led by the Electronic Industries Alliance, argue that they need the foreigners because they can't find enough skilled U.S. engineers and technical workers.

For what the business want to pay them...

[joe fonebone]

Remember,
why be an engineer, when you can make more money..
driving a hi lo.....putting bolts on cars on an assembly line......hanging drywall.......rough carpentry.....etc, etc,etc...

[q_an_a]

this is one of those set up jpobs where they have an applicant in some country and they write specs for that person. Of course they can't find someone who can use the software and is a left handed golfer. He is in need of a green card.

[snarkpup]

The last company I worked for advertized a job opening that required a minimum of a decade of experience in a position that most would consider an entry-level stepping stone. And the last time I was job hunting, I saw lots of computer-related job postings that required so much knowledge of the internals of the company's products that anyone who wasn't already an employee need not apply.

[Brilliant]

If you ask me, the real problem is that management pays itself too much money, and takes it out of R&D. The corporate governance rules need to be redone. Stockholders ought to have more say in what management gets paid. Make them go to the shareholders for approval of their salaries.

[Flightdeck]

"No one can do the job better than the manager and their people skills are often nonexistent."

You're right; unlike in many other fields, the boss usually has to be better than all the employees at their own jobs. With that much knowledge and skill, there's little room left for personable managerial skills. When one comes along with those as well, he/she is guaranteed to be successful.

[Flightdeck]

"why be an engineer, when you can make more money..
driving a hi lo.....putting bolts on cars on an assembly line......hanging drywall.......rough carpentry.....etc, etc,etc..."

I think it is rare for a drywall guy to make more than an engineer.

[bvw]

Some H1Bs make more sure, but the majority do not. Especially when employers hire them for the lower per job requistion cost, say in government contract work. In such contracts the employer doesn't care much for performance so much as putting bodies in to the client. The profit percentage is fixed, the only way to gain more profit is to pump up the number of bodies at the site. H1B's are preferred for the low rate and the handcuffing to the desk that derives from the visa requirments.

[joe fonebone]

drywall guys here average 25 to 35 bucks an hour....................not many engineers make that

[PCBMan]

When it comes to design software, pretty much the only way to learn how to use it is on the job. Nowadays, many companies are not willing to let people go that route. They only want people who have a lot of previous experience with it, and complain when the pickings are slim.

[Alberta's Child]

As I've posted here before, I can attest to the fact that there is a shortage of engineers. One of the primary factors here is that engineers aren't educated they way they once were. A graduate of a typical engineering school today would probably have been considered a technician in previous generations, since engineers don't get the thorough education that their predecessors received.

I have a relative who is a retired engineer, and I was always amazed at just how comprehensive his college curriculum was compared to mine.

[clamper1797]

Some H1Bs make more sure, but the majority do not

This is not what I have seen in the industry ...

Member of iPOD chip design team