Many of the jobs being advertised by manufacturing companies lack applicants that are trained in those positions. Skilled labor is not meeting the needs of our factories. Male dominated fields are suffering but why? Males are not doing well in school and don't make it to college for training.
Keeping Boys Engaged in School is Challenging
Why are boys not doing as well in school as girls? This is something many schools throughout the nation are trying to figure out. One thing that many in education do agree upon is that the longer boys sit, the less they learn. Peg Tyre, writer for Newsweek, The Chicago Tribune and author, has done extensive research on boys and school and concluded that boys and girls need to be taught differently for them to succeed. This is more crucial for boys than girls.
Michael Bloomberg, Mayor of New York City, is searching for how to keep boys (both white and minority) in school. This summer, Bloomberg will unveil his plans on changes to be made in the New York City Schools. These changes are likely to include:
- Single-sex schools
- Mentoring
- Tutoring
- After school programs
Bloomberg has expressed great concerned about the undereducated males (dropouts) in the prison system. "It’s a time bomb in our society and we have to do something about it," he said. [1] Last year, 65.5% of girls graduated from high school in New York City and only 52.6% of boys. This is totally unsustainable for the city.
Skilled Labor is Turning Gray
Some traditional careers, such as welding, are hard pressed to fill positions opening because of career welders retiring. The state of Virginia is recruiting welders from surrounding states and being successful by offering higher salaries. Many junior colleges have positions posted for technical careers that were not filled last year in spite of the slowed hiring due to the weak economy.
"Factory owners have been adding jobs slowly but steadily since the beginning of the year. Yet some of these employers complain that they cannot fill their openings. Plenty of people are applying for the job. The problem, the companies say, is a mismatch between the kind of skilled workers needed and the ranks of the unemployed." [2]
Some Companies are Doing Better than Others – Which Ones Are?
Inventories in many companies are slightly increasing which could lead to work hours being cut and even layoffs. But two companies are growing.
3M based out of Minneapolis, MN announced on June 28th that sales would grow from $6.6 billion to $6.75 billion. 3M makes 55,000 products from Post-It Notes to Scotch tape. Expected growth is 4-6%. [3]
Caterpillar Inc. is the world's largest maker of construction equipment and expects to see a 25% rise this year. In spite of a slump car sales, there is a surging demand for equipment from the energy and mining industries in developing nations. James Owen, Chief Executive Officer for Caterpillar states, "We’re coming back very strongly after the recession. We’ll see growth in oil, gas and coal because we need energy for these rapid-growth emerging countries that are driving the need for commodities." [3] Des Moines Area Community College in Des Moines, IA offers a diesel program connected with Caterpillar Inc. [4]
As the economy recovers, many businesses will be looking for stilled workers. The skills are often developed in a junior college requiring a high school diploma or GED. If boys are so discouraged by high school that it is too painful to continue, who is going to become skilled in these careers and who will fill the factories? The key to our future economy is to educate our children through high school and into a two-year or four-year college.
[1] Glader, Paul. "City Reading Out to Male Students," The Wall Street Journal, June 25, 2010.
[2] Rich, Motoko. "Factory jobs return, but skilled workers scarce," The New York Times, July 1, 2010.
[3] Homan, Timothy R. "Manufacturing in U.S. Expanded Less Than Forecast," Bloomberg Business Week, July 1, 2010.
[4] Des Moines Area Community College
Barbara Pytel - Email me Experience Although I was never particularly fond of going to school as an ELL student, I ironically became a teacher, ...
