The decline continues

[Donedirtcheap]

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/income-gap-widens-american-factories-160206632.html

 

[Zil]

Actually, factory jobs are slowly returning to USA. But we sure trust Yahoo.

 

[Drifted_Cowboy]

We could use a duplicitous trust buster right about now. He could carry a big stick and create a Federal Reserve of some sort.

 

[Donedirtcheap]

http://www.dailynews.com/business/20140103/us-workers-lose-as-firms-cheat-on-tech-immigration-visas

http://www.globalresearch.ca/the-of...an-jobs-a-greater-threat-than-terrorism/18725

 

[PastTense]

The new IT jobs are white-collar jobs. This country used to have a lot of decently paying blue-collar jobs for high school graduates. It doesn't anymore and this is a major loss.

 

[jeanontheroad]

PastTense, you are correct. The well-paid jobs are going to go to those who have higher education or special training in the right fields. Some factory jobs are gone forever and they aren't coming back. We have the capacity to decide how we will educate ourselves and our children. It's up to us if we we decide to do a bad job of it and look for who else we can blame.

 

[sephson]

The well-paid jobs are going to go to those who have higher education or special training in the right fields.

The trick here is determining what training the next generation is going to need for the new high paying jobs that simply don't exist today.

Also in the realm of specialized training, certain niche jobs can prove to be surprisingly resistant to economic fluctuations. Certain sectors of the entertainment industry, specifically the special events side of the industry, and regional theatres that rely on donors for their survival have really been struggling. But even as event companies and regional theatres have had to cut staff or close down entirely, there is still a significant demand for qualified stage technicians.

My own job, due mostly to the somewhat unique nature of the show that I work on, requires a highly specialized skill set. This means that at least for the foreseeable future, my job is secure. If I were to quit my job tomorrow, the company I work for would be hard pressed to find someone with the same skills I have. I am not the best electrician on the planet, nor am I the best stage lighting technician out there. But take the world's best electrician or the best lighting technician and put him in my job, he'd be overwhelmed, simply because non-standard techniques, along with skills that aren't covered in either of these skill sets are needed to do the job.

Now the flip side of this is that because I have such a unique set of skills, if I were to lose my job tomorrow, I would have a hard time finding a new one, largely because many of the skills I've learned don't really translate to the rest of the industry. Also, as with others who have full time, staff positions in the industry, because I've been in my current job for close to fifteen years, I really haven't kept pace with changing technology in the wider entertainment industry. This would put me at a serious disadvantage when competing against other, often younger, and quite possibly more qualified techs.

Now, the company I work for has weathered the recent economy fairly well. Raises have been smaller and less frequent, but as long as we continue to sell out and I remain an asset to the company, my job is secure and I can continue to do what I love and not have to worry about the previous paragraph actually coming about.

It's kind of a long winded way of coming to a point, but I'm trying to illustrate that if enough of the next generation can find the right niche markets, they just may find themselves in a good position to ride out the next economic down turn.

 

[GotSmart]

Every generation has to make their own opportunities.

I spent my youth working a different job every 3 years to gain as diverse of a skill set because I knew everyone will always need repairs. What I did not figure on, was being disabled 5 times. Even so, with a bad spine and leg I have people all over the country wanting me to work on their homes. I only use my college education (BS in Communications and Advertising) on line communicating with as diverse of a people as I can find. I started out in a chicken farm. Selling eggs, vegetables, and bags of manure to the rich to grow their own vegetables.

My youngest has just finished 4 years in college (at 22) and is starting a job translating Geek into American English. Her employer has an IQ in the 170 range, and has trouble making himself understood with the general public. He has around 200 patents at the age of 24.

After one of my surgeries, I worked for a halfway house that specialized in delinquent children. One of those boys with an IQ of 80, saved up enough money to buy a mower and gardening tools. He now owns a small but successful gardening business that makes enough in 7 months to cover his expenses for the year. He drives around on a riding mower with his tools in a tow behind cart.

If someone is willing to keep "fighting" they can always find a place to earn a living.

It is true that the middle class is getting smaller, but as always happens, things change to make new changes and shake the plumb tree.

 

[decodancer]

There are trade jobs for those who choose to learn them. I was a dog groomer for over 30 years and never had trouble finding a job. I was hired sight unseen in several cases because of a shortage of people willing to get a little dirty. A decent mechanic is an asset everywhere. Two years of nursing school and you'll never be out of work. I know too many college educated kids working as waiters.

 

[Drifted_Cowboy]

Sittin down here in the campfire light, with the ghost of old Tom Joad....

 

[Donedirtcheap]

 

[Drifted_Cowboy]

Excellent share. This one is my favorite version. My generation seems slightly more pissed off.

 

[Where~the~wind~blows]

The IT jobs are white-collar jobs. This country used to have a lot of decently paying blue-collar jobs for high school graduates. It doesn't anymore and this is a major loss.

two words India and China