After business trashes labor for decades, downsizes and cuts wages, it complains about a shortage of skilled labor. Business Week had a short piece about Japan, suggesting the same problem.
Bremmer, Brian. 2005. "Japan: The Down Side of Downsizing." Business Week." (November): p. 55. November 22, 2005 Skills Shortage Plagues Manufacturers By REUTERS *Filed at 9:02 a.m. ET* WASHINGTON (Reuters) - More than 80 percent of U.S. manufacturers say they cannot find enough qualified workers to meet customer demands, according to an industry study released on Tuesday. While some 3.4 million factory jobs have been lost since 1998, the National Association of Manufacturers said employers are now struggling to find enough high-skilled machinists, technicians and engineers to keep production lines humming. Of more than 800 manufacturers surveyed, 13 percent reported a severe shortage of qualified workers, while 68 percent experienced a moderate shortage. ``The survey exposes a widening gap between the dwindling supply of skilled workers in America and the growing technical demands of the modern manufacturing workplace,'' NAM president John Engler said. The report, released by NAM, the Manufacturing Institute and Deloitte Consulting, found 83 percent of manufacturers were struggling to serve customers because there were not enough qualified workers. Some struggled to produce enough to meet customer demand, while others could not meet targets for productivity or customer service. The exodus of baby boomers from the workforce, a negative stereotype of manufacturing and a drop in the number of U.S. students pursuing technical or engineering degrees are fueling the problem, Engler said. Jeffrey Owens, president of Peoria, Illinois-based Advanced Technology Services, helps manufacturers fill the gap. ``It's a pretty significant problem,'' said Owens, whose 1,500 workers provide factory maintenance for heavy machinery maker Caterpillar Inc. <http://www.nytimes.com/redirect/marketwatch/redirect.ctx?MW=http://custom.marketwatch.com/custom/nyt-com/html-companyprofile.asp&symb=CAT> (CAT.N) and industrial and aerospace conglomerate Honeywell International Inc. <http://www.nytimes.com/redirect/marketwatch/redirect.ctx?MW=http://custom.marketwatch.com/custom/nyt-com/html-companyprofile.asp&symb=HON> (HON.N), among others. ``A lot of people are retiring who are extremely talented, good people, and there's nobody coming in behind them ... The younger generation doesn't consider manufacturing a viable career alternative,'' Owens said. NO CACHET While the image of back-breaking labor in steel plants or on assembly lines may be what most Americans still think of when they imagine factory work, Owens said the modern workplace is often more about computers. ``You really use your brain a lot more than you use your back,'' he said. ``There are some guys that can really work magic with the machinery to keep it running. Sometimes it's more of an art than a science.'' While ATS has established a training program to lure students out of high school or technical schools and into a workplace where they can become multi-skilled technicians, experts say education in the nation as a whole is weak. ``Communication is needed between campuses and employers,'' said Cliff Waldman, a global economist at the Manufacturers Alliance/MAPI, a business research organization. ``Companies have been remarkably innovative ... (but) the educational system has to work on instilling these skills.'' NAM said its survey found significant dissatisfaction among manufacturers with the quality of kindergarten-to-grade 12 education and the dearth of adequate career counseling. ``We must update the image of modern manufacturing in the minds of young people, their parents and educators, and encourage more students to study math and science or follow a technical career path,'' Engler said. -- Michael Perelman Economics Department California State University michael at ecst.csuchico.edu Chico, CA 95929 530-898-5321 fax 530-898-5901
