Letters to the Editor
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Inflexible labor market...
The reason why most people don't want to join these sorts of jobs mostly has to do with the lack of mobility. Simply put, a steel welder, or linemen, or pipe-fitter, is at the unholy mercy of the local company that, usually, is the only game in town. Companies can blame things on "poor math skills" all they want, but what the IBEW points out is true; why join a labor market where you might be downsized, have your pension or health care frozen, and after dedicating 10 or more years of your life to a company, only be thrown out on your ass. Its the same in every field, from teachers and social workers, to airline pilots and truck drivers.
Another problem is wanting something for nothing; a friend of mine is trained welder but found that no one wanted him because he did not have 10 or more years of welding experience under his belt. Meanwhile said companies KEEP putting up ads everywhere looking for skilled welders, but offering no one the chance. In the end, he packed it up and went north looking for better pastures. You can't just throw out a wanted ad and expect people to come beating down your door; you really do have to "grow" them from the inside, and no company wants to make that investment anymore. In a kind of hilarity only capitalists wouldn't find amusing, management is entering a defacto strike by simply not having enough people to work.