Posted on 08/24/2014 6:54:55 AM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
America has a deficit of workers. Willing workers. Capable workers. Skilled, or at least semi-skilled workers, who can do a job and do it well. There are at least one million jobs that go begging day after day if only employers could find workers to fill them.
This probably seems hard-to-believe. After all, how can America have a worker shortage when we have about 18 million Americans who are unemployed or underemployed? When the real unemployment rate is 12 percent?
Well certainly the economy isn’t creating nearly as many jobs as it should – in large part because of regulatory and tax restraints on hiring workers. Obamacare’s anti-employment impact, including the rule that caps employment at 50 workers or less at many firms to avoid the law’s higher costs, is just one example of a law that adds to unemployment lines.
But there are also millions of unemployed Americans who don’t have the skill sets to match what employers are in need of. To make matters worse, a lot of these frustrated job searchers have college degrees that are about as marketable as the paper diploma they are written on.
So what kind of jobs are going unfilled?
* Manufacturing – We always hear we are losing good manufacturing jobs in America and those bedrock middle class jobs aren’t coming back. Gregory Baise, the president of the Illinois Manufacturing Association, tells me that there are “some 500,000 jobs we can’t fill. It’s the biggest problem our industry faces.”. The industry needs welders, pipefitters, electricians, engineers. It needs people skilled in robotics and basic engineering.
* Trucking – At any time over the last several years there have been about 30,000 too few truckers to run long haul routes. The American Trucking Association tells me the number could be closer to 50,000. This is admittedly a tough and high-stress job with lots of time away from friends and family. But they are jobs that pay $50,000 and up, and a lot more than that with overtime.
* Energy – Bloomberg reports that “Gulf Coast oil, gas and chemical companies will have to find 36,000 new qualified workers” by 2016. Many energy towns have unemployment rates of less than 3 percent – in other words, there’s a worker shortage.
These aren’t menial or “dead end” jobs. They typically pay between $50,000 and $90,000 a year and with benefits the compensation can climb to $100,000. That’s rich in most nations.
Bob Funk, CEO of Express Employment Professionals, one of the nation’s largest temporary employment agencies located in Oklahoma City, places more Americans into jobs than just about anyone. With nearly half-a million hires a year he tells me, he can find a job for “any American with a strong work ethic and can pass a drug test.” He also estimates that the worker shortage – those with skills to fill available jobs – “is at least one million and probably higher than that.”
Why is it so hard to fill these jobs?
One reason is the curse of the so-called “skills mismatch.” American workers with high school or even college degrees just aren’t technically qualified to do the jobs that are open. This is a stunning indictment of our school system at all levels considering that all in parents and taxpayers often invest as much as $200,000 or more in a child’s education. We’re not turning our kids into competent workers.
Some governors like Mike Pence of Indiana have moved to make vocational education more standard in the Hoosier State. It’s a great idea and it’s a start.
But this won’t solve the whole problem because many companies are already willing to offer 3 to 6 months on the job training for trucking and manufacturing jobs. They will teach them men and women how to operate the machinery, the computers, and the scientific equipment. These aren’t sweatshop jobs.
Mr. Funk cites figures that more than half of the applicants for these kinds of jobs in the temporary job market can’t pass a drug test. “They are unemployable in that case,” he says regretfully.
Then there is the issue that these jobs don’t get filled because the work lacks glitz and glamour.
Too many Americans have come to view blue collar jobs or skilled artisan jobs as beneath them.
Contributing to this attitude is the wide availability of unemployment insurance, food stamps, mortgage bailout funds and other welfare. Taking these taxpayer handouts is somehow seen as normal and a first, not a last resort. One owner of a major trucking company told me last year, “drivers who get laid off don’t come back until their unemployment benefits run out.” This is documented by research from my colleagues at the Heritage Foundation who have found that “4 million Americans laid off in the recession faced effective marginal tax rates near or above 100 percent [because of welfare benefits], significantly reducing their attachment to the labor market.”
There’s no doubt America needs millions of more jobs. But we could put one million more people in jobs tomorrow if we get schools to train our kids with core competencies and if we could instill in Americans an old-fashioned work ethic. The only dead-end job is no job at all.
“any American with a strong work ethic and can pass a drug test.”
Therein lies the problem, years ago drug tests were rare, now they are required everywhere.
The stoners can thank lawyers and insurance companies for that.
A company gets far lower liability insurance rates if they have a ‘zero tolerance’ drug policy. The reason is if an employee is hurt in an accident and has any illegal drugs in their system the company is open to law suits.
We can continue to perpetuate this myth that Americans don't want to work or that there are jobs they cannot do, but the reality is that both parties have abandoned the American worker who has become a disposable commodity.
And right there you have the "skills gap".
Of course, if your guy was running a larger company, he might rent a few Congressmen to raise the H1-B quotas and then bring in crews of immigrants through a temp agency. Or he might just hire crews of illegals, like all of his competitors do.
I work regularly with millennial-aged staff. They are conscientious and diligent in their efforts. Many of them are working two jobs - and they are not getting paid very much.
With decent leadership (and sometimes even without decent leadership) they can do very well.
Charity is voluntary.
Government "charity" is done with "donations" extracted by force, fear and intimidation with the full weight of the government backing it up..
Bingo!
Who is pushing illegals as a solution? It is LEGAL IMMIGRATION that is killing the American worker and the middle class. Legal immigrants use the welfare system to a greater degree than the native born.
DOT regs. Federal requirement. If you're going long-haul you can't get around that.
Drilling companies won't hire a druggie, either. Most companies which have jobs involving moving expensive equipment won't either.
The list is long, but there is no Right to work somewhere if you are a drug user. (I suppose they'll sue for that next.)
In which case, more productive industries will leave states like the gun manufacturers are leaving anti-gun states. Insurance costs and liability profiles will mandate it.
I'm in a managerial position where I see a lot of that -- and even some things you didn't mention. You summed it up perfectly in one sentence: Many Americans do not take their jobs seriously.
Not an indictment of the school system. Just evidence of socialist brainwashing that values social worker desk jockeys above all.
And they will lecture you on man made Global Warming while having no useful skills.
The Federal Reserve, the largest corporations and their paid for politicians have spent decades suppressing wages and devaluing the dollar. There isn’t a shortage of workers. They’ve destroyed the fair labor market.
I’m 53 years old. Been in the car business for 22 years. Before that, out of high school, worked in manufacturing. I don’t do drugs. Of any kind. Unless you consider Ibuprophen a drug. Also, in the 35 years I’ve been working I’ve maybe missed a week of work. Total.
A couple of years ago I became unemployed. Could have gone to work immediately but I wanted something out of the automobile business. Looked for 3 mo’s. Couldn’t even get an interview.
So, there are good hard working people out there. If you didn’t want to hire me then who else won’t you hire?
Our education system has been controlled by liberals for the past century and drug tests.
Johnny cant read...but he can put a condom on a banana.
Mr. Funk cites figures that more than half of the applicants for these kinds of jobs in the temporary job market can’t pass a drug test. “They are unemployable in that case,” he says regretfully.
....
If the compensation wasn’t half, in terms of purchasing power, compared to what it was 25 years ago, you’d be getting better applicants. Stephen Moore, the author, used to be a good guy. Now he’s just a shill.
Obama, the left, the Chamber of Commerce.....
"Houston, I think we see the problem...!"
It also doesn't help the government will take generous take care of anybody who doesn't want to work.
——”Houston, I think we see the problem...!”——
I have occasion to visit manufacturers on behalf of their customers.
At one place I visit, the boss always finds a reason to be on the floor to see that I am cared for. Over the years he and I have a chat for several minutes.
He made a nice expansion that allowed him to move some of his recieved materials and convert the old space to increased manufacturing capacity. I complimented him on his expansion. There was a problem.... a big problem.
He couldn’t find people to work that would
a. come to work everyday or
b. pass the drug test.
He said his total costs for medical checks including drug screening and back ground and etc cost him about $1,300 per new hire. He had been at it 6 months and still wasn’t up to speed. He finally quit all the other checks until he nailed down the drug test.
He had good “manufacturing” jobs in a small very specialized business with strong export sales.
Lots of failures involved here but the one that never gets mentioned is this is a failure of management to do its job.
Job 1 of the professional management class is to assemble and maintain a work force. Sounds like they are incapable of doing their jobs.
All I hear from them is whining, moaning, and excuses. And quietly collecting huge bonusus
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