Forty-nine percent of US companies are having a hard time filling skilled positions

[thewireman]

I wish I would have learned a trade when I was 18. Now at 35 I have thought about the plumbing trade but to start of at $11 an hour at a non union company is taking a huge step back and I can't afford to accept that pay with a family.

 

[ScipioCowboy]

Here's an idea. Before heading off of college, identify deficiencies in the labor force and then occupy the appropriate major.

 

[a_minimalist]

Is it possible that people aren't taking any risks anymore when it comes to hiring? Are all positions always filled by someone with a ton of experience? Seems like everyone wants the best but when has there been that many labeled "the best" in every industry? Seems like there is no such thing as training people anymore. And internships don't count, that's free labor and you're rarely ever trained. It should be illegal.

 

[a_minimalist]

Well part of the problem is that a lot of entry level jobs want 5 years of experience. Something doesn't add up there.

Exactly! I wish I saw this before I posted something. I'm 27 and have a reasonable amount of experience in my field and I've struggled finding a job. I went to the best school in America for what I did and wanted to do and had more experience than anyone else in the school, yet when it was time to find a job it took forever. I'm unemployed right now and looking but all of the positions that I would be hired for, and worked one before I went to school for a year and a half, want 3 years experience. It is something much deeper than just unskilled workers.

 

[YosemiteSam]

Here's an idea. Before heading off of college, identify deficiencies in the labor force and then occupy the appropriate major.

Most young people seem to believe Twitter and Facebook are the majors of choice.

 

[MapleLeaf]

No kidding.

I am having trouble finding qualified CNC users trained with a multi-axis Waterjet.

...for you. I have over ten years on both Fanuc and Motoman.

I can program and completely rebuild the high pressure intensifier. What's the pay?

 

[Kangaroo]

I'll take that a step further and say it's almost impossible to find people who are motivated, can pass a UA and come to work everyday. The sense of entitlement some have towards their job is unbelievable.

The other issue is companies no longer take care of their own. We have that issue at the Hospital I work at I one of the better IT guys I get pulled into more crap to fix on other peoples system because I am good at what I do. Here is the rub I can not get a title change (even with over lapping pay grades) yet they fill an open spot with a guy who has no experience doing the job give him more money and a higher title. Then they wonder why their better employes left and now they have a big void that can not be filled with quality replacements. The little things matter and companies drop the ball.

The options are you need to leave the company to get a real pay raise let alone a simple title change promotion.


What i seen happen is way to often by not rewarding the good worker while what is the incentive to do better you can stall do just enough and coast. In fact you are better off by doing very little because what is the point if you do good work they load you up and you get no reward for your hardwork. Seen way to many people do that because it is easy and hey they still pull down an easy paycheck.

 

[zrinkill]

...for you. I have over ten years on both Fanuc and Motoman.

Are you located in the East Texas area?

 

[YosemiteSam]

Are you located in the East Texas area?

He is in Canada. Unless he wants to move to the best country in the world. Texas.

 

[BrAinPaiNt]

Don't know if it is the same way now, and of course with school being out now it might not matter at this time.

However at one time many High Schools had a Vo-Tech relationship.

There would be some local Votech schools that would take on high school kids.

So the first year (normally as a Junior in HS) you would go there for half a day. The next year (the senior year of HS) you would work for half a day before going to school.

So they would work together, then the Vo-Tech would help students find part time jobs. The companies usually liked it because they got a little extra help for minimum wage while the students liked it because they got some first hand working exp.

Our local vo-tech would also let people bring in cars or other things for the students to work on and the person bringing them in got a substantial discount on the price.

Might be something people think about looking into if they need some part time help in the future. In some cases if the student works out you could hire them on full time in the future.

I remember working the first four hours in the morning and then working a few hours after school. This also helps students get a better overall grade point average in school.

 

[burmafrd]

now the schools look down on VoTech. It is not good enough for them.

 

[YosemiteSam]

Don't know if it is the same way now, and of course with school being out now it might not matter at this time.

However at one time many High Schools had a Vo-Tech relationship.

There would be some local Votech schools that would take on high school kids.

So the first year (normally as a Junior in HS) you would go there for half a day. The next year (the senior year of HS) you would work for half a day before going to school.

So they would work together, then the Vo-Tech would help students find part time jobs. The companies usually liked it because they got a little extra help for minimum wage while the students liked it because they got some first hand working exp.

Our local vo-tech would also let people bring in cars or other things for the students to work on and the person bringing them in got a substantial discount on the price.

Might be something people think about looking into if they need some part time help in the future. In some cases if the student works out you could hire them on full time in the future.

I remember working the first four hours in the morning and then working a few hours after school. This also helps students get a better overall grade point average in school.

Our high school had a work program where you got credit for working, but if there was one with a vocational school, I wasn't aware of it.

now the schools look down on VoTech. It is not good enough for them.

The problem I find is many vocational schools are sub par. Maybe the issue is funding or something. Maybe a lot of quality teachers just don't want to work for a vocational school.

It's a shame though. Specialized training in a vocation can really help some people get started in industries they wouldn't normally end up working in.

 

[Muhast]

It extends all the way down the ladder as well.

I am the manager of a retail sports store and I routinely have kids(16-18) with no work experience come in and fill out applications wanting $11.50-12.00 an hour (min wage in GA is 7.25).

It is baffling

 

[rocboy22]

The other issue is companies no longer take care of their own. We have that issue at the Hospital I work at I one of the better IT guys I get pulled into more crap to fix on other peoples system because I am good at what I do. Here is the rub I can not get a title change (even with over lapping pay grades) yet they fill an open spot with a guy who has no experience doing the job give him more money and a higher title. Then they wonder why their better employes left and now they have a big void that can not be filled with quality replacements. The little things matter and companies drop the ball.

The options are you need to leave the company to get a real pay raise let alone a simple title change promotion.


What i seen happen is way to often by not rewarding the good worker while what is the incentive to do better you can stall do just enough and coast. In fact you are better off by doing very little because what is the point if you do good work they load you up and you get no reward for your hardwork. Seen way to many people do that because it is easy and hey they still pull down an easy paycheck.

couldn't agree more with this. many large companies act in this manner. you must either leave to go somewhere else in order to get a decent raise, or you just coast so you don't feel like you are getting completey taken advantage of.

 

[BrAinPaiNt]

I think we were talking about this, to a degree, in a thread a long ways back.

Something along the lines of someone learning to do something like AC repair, TV Repair, Washer repair and small engine (lawnmowers) and setting up a business where that person and maybe one or two others did it.

Now days it seems hard to find a person to fix some things like AC, TV, Washer and dryer that is not connected to a larger company.


Seems to be a dying breed. Now you wind up going to a larger company to have all of these things worked on or you just say heck with it and just buy the new AC, Washer/Dryer, TV or lawnmower.

I would think in a smaller rural area someone could make a killing if they learned to do a repair service that worked in a few different areas.

A few years ago we had a problem with our washer. We found one guy that still worked on them. Some time after that we called him again and he had retired so we just got a new washer/dryer.

We were wanting someone to look at our TV and the closest we could find was a guy a couple hours away and he was not willing to travel so far without a large amount of money for travel alone.

 

[Kangaroo]

I think we were talking about this, to a degree, in a thread a long ways back.

Something along the lines of someone learning to do something like AC repair, TV Repair, Washer repair and small engine (lawnmowers) and setting up a business where that person and maybe one or two others did it.

Now days it seems hard to find a person to fix some things like AC, TV, Washer and dryer that is not connected to a larger company.


Seems to be a dying breed. Now you wind up going to a larger company to have all of these things worked on or you just say heck with it and just buy the new AC, Washer/Dryer, TV or lawnmower.

I would think in a smaller rural area someone could make a killing if they learned to do a repair service that worked in a few different areas.

A few years ago we had a problem with our washer. We found one guy that still worked on them. Some time after that we called him again and he had retired so we just got a new washer/dryer.

We were wanting someone to look at our TV and the closest we could find was a guy a couple hours away and he was not willing to travel so far without a large amount of money for travel alone.

When my washer went out this last month it was cheaper to buy a new one then it was to repair the dam thing. Service Tech cost 75+$ then parts and labor. Me and my father in law messed with it looked pretty much think it was a clutch the part was $300 on a $500 washer new so we bought a new one it was cheaper. TV's are the same way by the time you pay for parts and labor it is generally cheaper to replace them unless you are in the super high end spectrum of the products.

Last time I had a refrigerator worked on it cost me $300 with parts and labor. When the other one broke I bought a new one for $500 (I have two)

 

[rocboy22]

When my washer went out this last month it was cheaper to buy a new one then it was to repair the dam thing. Service Tech cost 75+$ then parts and labor. Me and my father in law messed with it looked pretty much think it was a clutch the part was $300 on a $500 washer new so we bought a new one it was cheaper. TV's are the same way by the time you pay for parts and labor it is generally cheaper to replace them unless you are in the super high end spectrum of the products.

Last time I had a refrigerator worked on it cost me $300 with parts and labor. When the other one broke I bought a new one for $500 (I have two)

was that before or after you attacked that woman and her dog?:laugh1:

 

[EGTuna]

My Unsolicited Advice: Become an IT consultant that is "hands on" and not just another PM. It pays more, you don't have to worry about office politics and who gets promoted over whom, etc. It's SOOO much better. The only downside is health insurance costs more, but it is more than off-set by the hourly rate. If you can get in with a prime vendor (or better yet, be the prime), then you should make 1.5 - 3x what a salaried employee makes without all the bs.

I made the switch to consulting in 3/2011, and I couldn't be happier. I wish I had done it much sooner. If you're hands-on (be it a developer, a tester, an analyst, etc) you should always have work. Even better if you specialize in a specific field; e.g., finance, healthcare, cyber-security, etc. Companies typically pay $150 - $350 an hour to the prime vendors for people (like D&T, E&Y, BAH), and then each vendor takes a chunk. So if you get with the prime vendor as an independent contractor, you can get a big slice of that chunk.

My recommendation is to find a smaller prime vendor that specializes in your field of choise that usually charges a discount rate, but will also not take as big a chunk out of your hourly rate. For example, D&T typically charges ~$250 a head, but some of the people they put on a client site are salaried employees probably making $70K-100K per year (even less for the younger folk). In other words, D&T makes MUCH more than what the actual person on site makes. And most of them are ****** morons who have no skills other than asking people for status or creating useless, but aesthetically pleasing xls documents.

I am with a prime vendor for several finance companies, and I know what he charges per hour and what he pays me, and I make sure I get paid and also the client gets their money's worth out of me - like I said; HANDS ON.

So to all you youngsters, (I'm 40), I strongly advise in getting/learning a specific IT skill and then find an industry you're interested in, and start consultiing. Trying to move up the corporate hierarchy will just leave you empty and skilless should the company decide to cut people based on age/longevity (watch the movie "Company Men" for a great fictional portrayal of how coporations work nowadays when they need to raise profits; it's about the shareholders, not the company).

Most people can live pretty comfortably making $75-$150 an hour. And you won't have to worry about kissing butt or any other corporate nonsense. However, if you dream of being middle-management (manager to sr. director) and having the entire organization below you thinking you're worhtless and know-nothing, then by all means, slowly work your way up the chain. And if you're really committed to being a titan of industry, then form your own company and make yourself President or CEO or Managing Director. What kind of company? An IT Consulting Firm of course!

 

[a_minimalist]

My Unsolicited Advice: Become an IT consultant that is "hands on" and not just another PM. It pays more, you don't have to worry about office politics and who gets promoted over whom, etc. It's SOOO much better. The only downside is health insurance costs more, but it is more than off-set by the hourly rate. If you can get in with a prime vendor (or better yet, be the prime), then you should make 1.5 - 3x what a salaried employee makes without all the bs.

I made the switch to consulting in 3/2011, and I couldn't be happier. I wish I had done it much sooner. If you're hands-on (be it a developer, a tester, an analyst, etc) you should always have work. Even better if you specialize in a specific field; e.g., finance, healthcare, cyber-security, etc. Companies typically pay $150 - $350 an hour to the prime vendors for people (like D&T, E&Y, BAH), and then each vendor takes a chunk. So if you get with the prime vendor as an independent contractor, you can get a big slice of that chunk.

My recommendation is to find a smaller prime vendor that specializes in your field of choise that usually charges a discount rate, but will also not take as big a chunk out of your hourly rate. For example, D&T typically charges ~$250 a head, but some of the people they put on a client site are salaried employees probably making $70K-100K per year (even less for the younger folk). In other words, D&T makes MUCH more than what the actual person on site makes. And most of them are ****** morons who have no skills other than asking people for status or creating useless, but aesthetically pleasing xls documents.

I am with a prime vendor for several finance companies, and I know what he charges per hour and what he pays me, and I make sure I get paid and also the client gets their money's worth out of me - like I said; HANDS ON.

So to all you youngsters, (I'm 40), I strongly advise in getting/learning a specific IT skill and then find an industry you're interested in, and start consultiing. Trying to move up the corporate hierarchy will just leave you empty and skilless should the company decide to cut people based on age/longevity (watch the movie "Company Men" for a great fictional portrayal of how coporations work nowadays when they need to raise profits; it's about the shareholders, not the company).

Most people can live pretty comfortably making $75-$150 an hour. And you won't have to worry about kissing butt or any other corporate nonsense. However, if you dream of being middle-management (manager to sr. director) and having the entire organization below you thinking you're worhtless and know-nothing, then by all means, slowly work your way up the chain. And if you're really committed to being a titan of industry, then form your own company and make yourself President or CEO or Managing Director. What kind of company? An IT Consulting Firm of course!

Company Men is a actually a very good reference and gives a good understanding about what goes on in a good portion of cases within corporate America. My father worked for the largest insurance company for 20+ years, was diagnosed with leukemia and within 1 year was laid off. At the end of the day it's a business and everyone is replaceable. Seems like the key is to make yourself irreplaceable.

 

[Kangaroo]

was that before or after you attacked that woman and her dog?:laugh1:

Hey I told my Boss's Boss he is next on the list already started stalking their cat I think it may be dinner tonight. Then maybe mix in some bath salts and face meat later.