Europe set to shed 150,000 engineering jobs

Financial Times ^ | June 16 2002 21:51 | By Peter Marsh

[DeaconBenjamin]

Don't go too long on that Euro contract.

[Drango]

Bummer. I can't understand why europeans can't compete in the world market. After all they average 60 days of vacation a year!

[claptrap]

Is there any truth to the end of summer stock market drop? So the vaunted Euro-slobs are just as greedy as the American-Robberbarons? Disgusting isnt it?

[UnBlinkingEye]

The European engineering sector is likely to shed 150,000 jobs this year as a result of a continuing slowdown in demand, and as companies shift manufacturing to lower-cost countries, according to industry projections.

Join the club Europe, the U.S. has lost well over a million engineering jobs and we still import foreign workers and ship work outside our borders. At least this article attributes the loss to cost cutting, not the phony shortage our political class and their corporate sponsors attempt to foist on us.

[Willie Green]

Don't go too long on that Euro contract.

It's a race to see who can achieve Third World status first: the European Union or the U.S.!

[dfwgator]

Look at it this way. Now they'll have even longer vacations.

[Bogey78O]

'which is having a big knock-on effect among companies producing mobile phones and switching equipment.'

That's a shame. Back in the 80s Bell bought a few switches from Siemen's. From what I heard the only trouble they had was they were so low maintenance the technicians assigned to them would forget how to work on them due to the infrequent need to. Thos Germans can do some mean engineering.

Now Canada on the other hand.

[Myrddin]

European productivity is handicapped by stupid laws limiting the number of hours worked. Americans are free to work outrageous amounts of overtime. In many cases they are more proficient...partially as a consequence of working all the time. The net effect of the overtime and greater proficiency is a level of productivity the Europeans can't match. Frankly, the same can be said of the Indians. Their labor rates may be low, but the quality is so bad that the rework by competent workers negates any anticipated savings. In the internet world, rework means missed dates and missed opportunities.

[Mo1]

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[meyer]

It's a race to see who can achieve Third World status first: the European Union or the U.S.!

Don't worry; we have guns.

And an abundance of Nukes.

[TheDon]

Guns or nukes? I wonder which has the most nutritional value...

[Archie Bunker on steroids]

Guns can shoot game, nukes can cook your kill.

[meyer]

Guns or nukes? I wonder which has the most nutritional value...

Why guns, of course. Everyone knows that...

[Nateman]

After so much socialism is it any wonder that Atlas is Shrugging in Europe?

[monkeyshine]

the "brutal slowdown" in telecommunications, which is having a big knock-on effect among companies producing mobile phones and switching equipment.

They're just realizing this now? Take a look at the stock price of Lucent, it seems the investors have known for quite some time.

I am concerned whether this is just a delayed reponse to America's slowdown, or if it is forshadowing even deeper cuts into the American economy. But I am happy to note that our economic output was up over 5% in the first quarter of the year.

[monkeyshine]

Of course. Guns are full of iron.

[July 4th]

After all they average 60 days of vacation a year!

"Wow. That was a fantastic vacation! Now, what was I working on??"

[edger]

Yeah, guns and nukes. And lawyers. Third world here we come.

[jadimov]

.....From what I heard the only trouble they had was they were so low maintenance the technicians assigned to them would forget how to work on them due to the infrequent need to.....

A smart business man would have fired the repair technicians and contracted the Siemens repair guys to do the repair work. It would be cheaper than keeping your own guys idle. (Picture the Maytag repairman.)

[jadimov]

.....Their labor rates may be low, but the quality is so bad that the rework by competent workers negates any anticipated savings.....

I remember reading a report that mentioned that. Low tech manufacturing will continue to leave the country as companies seek lower labor costs. We will lose jobs making shoes and cardboard boxes. High tech and high quality manufacturing will remain in the US over the long run. Better educated, higher skilled Americans are more productive and do better work than their counterparts overseas. Even when higher labor costs are factored in, Americans are better bet economically. Some companies will move jobs overseas and will be driven out of business by those who remain here.