Community Chat

[Cakers3]

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@bathina wrote:

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@Witchy Woman wrote:

@traveler 

I grew up around St. Louis, and cars were big business in the area.  Dated a young man who worked the line that made Corvettes.

My dad worked in a railroad switching yard that often moved cars out the plants on to their destinations.  

I feel deeply sorry for those folks who thought they had a job for life.  I agree that not everyone needs college, but so little emphasis is placed on trades anymore.

My husband is a bricklayer (started working at 13 with his grandfather).  He cannot find anyone that has the skill level he has.  He's getting older and doesn't want to do the work as much as he did, so he's diversified. 

He laments that no one coming up knows how to do anything!  Has trouble finding anyone who wants to "labor" and learn on the job. 

"Too hard", they say.

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You've answered your own question. Manual labor impacts the body and most can't hold out until 67, today's retirement age. Who wants to have to start a new career at 55? It's hard alright, hard on the body.

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@bathinaI believe the "too hard" was about having to learn.  He didn't say that older people were saying that; he said he has trouble finding anyone who wants to "labor" and learn on the job.

It wasn't about learning a new career at 55.

The fact remains with technology today many young people are looking for the sit down, programming, computer engineering, etc. jobs.

I remember at least half of the kids in my neighborhood going to trade schools and graduating with some well-paying jobs.

I'd get into the "free education for all" but alas not here.

Just sayin'.

[icezeus]

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@Vivian wrote:

How very sad. I get the feeling sometimes that we no longer make anything anymore. Despite political promises, we are losing more and more manufacturing jobs. We had better adjust to the changing world or we will be left behind. Trying to recapture late 19th century and early 20th century industries will not solve our problems. We need to develop a workforce that has the technical savvy to create products needed for the 21st century and beyond.

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@Vivian 

I was reading an article  last night that focused on several of the workers who have lost their jobs. It was pretty depressing. One gentlemen started right out of high school at the plant, and knows nothing else. He is 48 years old, and has worked for the plant for 30 years. They offered retraining for free for the affected workers, but he dropped out after a week. He could not keep up. He was behind from day one when he was told to insert a flash drive. I was sort of shocked. He is not old but could not even do such in my view a simple task, but perhaps I have that viewpoint, because  I sit in front of a computer all day.

[icezeus]

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@chlema wrote:

@NicksmomESQ Yes, do agree re the college for everyone is not the answer.  Fifteen years ago my grandson went to a technical high school and chose a career in sheet metal.  He knew he wasn't "college material" and in fact had no desire to go that route.  So he rose to the top of the class in his chosen field and today is a foreman making excellent money.  Educators today need to get out of the college mind set and realize that many of our young people are better using their minds along with their hands.  There is a need for both.

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@chlema 

I agree my niece who is 25 years old went the traditional path she obtained her Bachelors and her Masters. (She has the college debt to show for it as well)

My Nephew, knew that college was not for him, and he went straight into the service. He is 20 years old and does not have to worry about repayment of student loans for the rest of his life.

[icezeus]

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@bikerbabe wrote:
There are so many sad stories about people laid-off from these manufacturing jobs. Middle-aged and never worked another job. May or may not have finished high school. They often qualify for free governement retraining programs (up to 2 years school plus a weekly stipend) but they refuse or try it and drop out because it’s too overwhelming and they don’t have the most basic skills to succeed. They can’t sell their home to relocate to another plant or they can’t move away from family. The most they can find locally is minimum wage. So they wait, convinced that their plant will reopen one day.

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@bikerbabe 

It looks as if we read the same article. I mentioned earlier how I read this truly depressing article last night. One of the shocking parts of the article was the lack of what I would consider basic skills. In this day and age you do not know what a flash drive is?

[bikerbabe]

@icezeus
Unfortunately many over 50 are computer and internet illiterate. Maybe even younger depending on their background. I know this sounds harsh, but I fear many older factory workers are stuck in an era that is gone. 😢

[alarmclock]

This has zero to do with politics or politicians.  It is the result of bad management at the company.

If you do some research, this was predicted years ago when the bad decisions were made by the CEO.

[sunshine45]

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@alarmclock wrote:

This has zero to do with politics or politicians.  It is the result of bad management at the company.

If you do some research, this was predicted years ago when the bad decisions were made by the CEO.

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i have to disagree.....i think there is enough blame to go around and not just lay it on the company itself.

[Sooner]

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@CrazyDaisy wrote:

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@Sooner wrote:

The GM plant in Oklahoma City closed a long time ago, and a lot of people who came with the plant moved away.  The area though found new businesses to occupy the building, has done a lot of new projects downtown, got the Thunder basketball team, and is continuing to build an expand.

So if Oklahoma City can do it, it can be done if people don't give up on the city!  I pray for all of them and wish them success and renewal.

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That is easy to say, however this is not Oklahoma City, it is a small town between Cleveland and Youngstown.  Infrastructure for transportation and a workforce to support the new businesses is required before a business will make a commitment. 

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@CrazyDaisy   OKC was a dilapidated small city with a run down downtown and was shaken to the core after the oil bust of the 1908's and GM leaving town.  Infastructure?  No, we had nothing to speak of .  

I was just trying to be hopeful. 

[PinkSunset]

I don't think politics figure in to this at all,

In the past, then maybe yes, giving incentives to companies to stay put or relocate to an area creating jobs for that area were good things and done with the idea that they would make things that people wanted to buy. 

But in this day and age, social media is the star player. Young people see others making tons of money without having college or training of any kind but simply by putting up a beauty video or exercise video on YouTube and getting 1mm followers, then ad revenue.

Our country is not one of manufacturing any more. We are more service oriented. And someone in their 50's who only worked in a plant their whole lives is a dinosaur. My son always tells me that in today's world, you are expected to change jobs every 5 years or so instead of the days when your resume showed 1 maybe 2 long term jobs in your whole career. 

As for GM closing that plant, again, a shame and wish they could have just used the plant to make other models, but the Cruze was not a good car. I leased one for 3 years and couldn't wait to get rid of it. Why spend all that money on plant operations when your product doesn't sell?

[CrazyDaisy]

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@icezeus wrote:

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@bikerbabe wrote:
There are so many sad stories about people laid-off from these manufacturing jobs. Middle-aged and never worked another job. May or may not have finished high school. They often qualify for free governement retraining programs (up to 2 years school plus a weekly stipend) but they refuse or try it and drop out because it’s too overwhelming and they don’t have the most basic skills to succeed. They can’t sell their home to relocate to another plant or they can’t move away from family. The most they can find locally is minimum wage. So they wait, convinced that their plant will reopen one day.

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@bikerbabe 

It looks as if we read the same article. I mentioned earlier how I read this truly depressing article last night. One of the shocking parts of the article was the lack of what I would consider basic skills. In this day and age you do not know what a flash drive is?

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To belittle people who do not have the same skill set as you is horrible.  Would bet if you were put into as factory, on a construction site, or on a farm etc you would have no idea which way is up.  It is not a sign that these people are not intelligent or knowledgeable, they have different skill set.  When retraining they need to start at the beginning rather than be making assumptions.