Who is seeing youth entering our world?

[DMiller]

I am a bit disheartened about where our little piece of the work pie is going. Have young guys like Junkyard working in the field but not seeing many of our youth getting in as operator or mechanic not even transport drivers. Anyone else see these problems?

 

[Junkyard]

I don't know what the underlying issues are. Maybe the schools are pushing tech jobs so much they don't think about the trades. Not having auto shop and the like in schools doesn't help. As flakey as companies are these days there is some merit to being a union operator or laborer. It is a shame, there's a lot of knowledge and experience retiring with a gap in good mechanics, operators and other trades.

I've often pondered how to recruit and retain the talent. Even before that how to evaluate potential candidates for the various positions. Companies that take care of and stand behind employees is important too. Nobody thinks long term anymore, employee or employer. They all chase the short term gain and don't think about the big picture.

Just my .02

 

[old-iron-habit]

Interesting in that last night I watched a documentary about college educations that never pay off for a large portions of students. They never make enough "extra" money in the field they end up in to pay there crazy college costs. Over half never work in there educated field. Our local construction unions have a active program in which I participate. We go to high schools and talk to the seniors about alternates to college. It's pretty amazing to see the interested kids eyes light up when it is explained that at the end of the mostly 4 year apprentice programs they are usually making +50 K a year and no college dept. Most kids that actually go that route have relations in the trades. Most parents push there kids for a college degree wither thay can afford it lr not and in most cases the college kids get started in life with a 1/4 million dollars in debt, start out later in life at less money, and a education that often never adds value to the career they end up in.
This is not intended to mean college is bad, only that it's not for everyone and there are alternatives.

 

[Tradesman]

I think it does come from the schools somewhat they're all school types and have a habit of looking down there noses at tradesmen, just try doing work for them personally. I have done my part my one son is a journeyman carpenter and the other is a top equipment operator. I also just signed a 19 year old kid up as an apprentice carpenter. I don't need to because carpentry is a voluntary trade but I feel i need to invest back into the trade that has been so good to me.

 

[Junkyard]

I think willing mentors is a big part of the equation too. Most kids don't want to work like the previous generations did and that may tend to irritate the mentor. I know I've dealt with it and see it here at work. Young kid comes to work at scale wage which is more than double what he's ever made. He di$ks around and shows up late not realizing the great opportunity he has.

 

[Dozerboy]

Down in the south we have plenty of youth almost all of them are Hispanic.

 

[Jakebreak]

We're seeing it to in the plumbing trade not to many people want to be a plumber but they make good money we just started our apprentice program up again about 5 months ago not to many young kids want to work they want to make good money and sit in an air condition tractor with a radio it has taken me 16 years of working in the construction trade and I'm finally making a decent living you just got work hard and it depends on how bad you want it

 

[Junkyard]

Which spurs another thought. The current crop of would be operators, mechanics etc seem to have a very obvious sense of entitlement, like they're too good to work their way up or should make big $$ right off the bat.

 

[Birken Vogt]

Which spurs another thought. The current crop of would be operators, mechanics etc seem to have a very obvious sense of entitlement, like they're too good to work their way up or should make big $$ right off the bat.

I remember my Grandpa saying that 20 years ago and he had been retired 20 years when he said it so nothing new under the sun....

 

[kshansen]

Down in the south we have plenty of youth almost all of them are Hispanic.

They probably come from a culture where hard and even dirty work is considered honorable not soomething to be looked down on.

My older brother back in the late `60's was in training to go in the Peace Corp. Part of the training included spending some time working with migrant workers in orchards in western NY.

He says right today that anyone who disparages Mexicans as lazy should try working a few days picking apples or pruning trees along side some of those people! If all the migrant workers in this country decided to either go home or stay home for one year much of this country would be starving.

 

[DMiller]

Only getting worse Birken, only gotten worse!

I came out of trade school with a certificate, would not even buy me a cup of coffee with it. I fought thru jobs, moving a lot, learning the hard way in production rate wage shops and managed. I do not see kids today making the efforts I did. I grew into mechanic from 1975, I managed to be auto/truck/heavy machine mechanic even working bulk systems for transport and delivery on some days then advanced to power station worker and eventually a plant operating engineer. I weld, I carpenter, I even farm a little and for that I managed to get a retirement.

 

[kshansen]

I remember my Grandpa saying that 20 years ago and he had been retired 20 years when he said it so nothing new under the sun....

Reminds me of where I worked. Norm and I did 99% of the engine and transmission rebuilds in the shop.

Every so often one of the other guys would go begging to the boss to get some time/experience in the motor shop. Most of the time after less than a full day in the motor shop they would be complaining about having to spend all day scrapping gaskets and washing up parts!

Always wondered how they thought those parts got cleaned when it was just Norm and myself??????

Then there was the new guy they were hiring to be a second mechanic in the shop after we had down-sized and were only working on our own equipment. I think he got pi$$ed at me when I told him never claim there was nothing to do if the boss came by. Told him sweep the floor, crush old filters, clean out drain buckets, empty trash cans. How those things got done when I was working all alone, don't think 90% of the people could answer that question.

Heck back when I was working as the traveling mechanic for the company and I was sent to another plant to do some work more than once while waiting for them to find the machine or plant mechanic to explain the problem I would pick up a shovel and broom and start cleaning their shop. Figured I was going to be working there so might as well make it a bit better for me.

 

[Knepptune]

Its fairly simple really, you guys generation didnt teach my generation how to work.

Thats my theory and I'm sticking to it.

 

[thepumpguysc]

don't get me started..

 

[John C.]

I think there are a pile of reasons for the knowledge gap happening nowadays in the blue collar trades. All the above statements have plenty of merit. I don't think its so much a question of people who want to get in an do it but rather few if any are exposed to the satisfaction of doing a good repair, rebuild a component that works, tune up a car engine, making a top quality weld troubleshooting a problem and making a fix. Kids don't get that rush when they did something good so turn to other things for satisfaction.

Probably another factor is there is no war generation to speak of to learn from anymore. When I started there were plenty of WWII, Korea and Vietnam craftsmen. It's pretty hard to whine in front of one of those guys when they tell you stories of working for months straight carrying bodies out of Pearl Harbor ships and then working to re-float and start the repairs while not knowing if the enemy was coming back with more bombs and bullets. You didn't get any sympathy for barking a knuckle from the guy who took point in the jungles of Vietnam or did perimeter duty on a frozen mountain ridge in Korea. Whining became accepted and around here actually defended lest we ruin someone's self esteem. I'd almost have to agree with Knepptune in that we accepted that behavior from our kids so we have only ourselves to blame.

So now you have immigrants who started out in dire straights, are hungry and have no intention of going back to the lives of desperation that they came from. If they can do the job then more power to them.

 

[Welder Dave]

I got into welding right out of high school. Had a very experienced teacher in school. Sometimes the problem is not from wanting to learn. Some experienced guys go out of their to help you but there are others that must figure you're trying to take their job and won't help you the least little bit. They'll watch you doing something that could be done much easier and faster not say a word. Even something they know you'll have to fix after your done. I always tried to help out the new guys and explain why you do things a certain way. I considered it a compliment if someone was asking how to do something. Some of the old guys want you fail. They think it makes them look better but it doesn't. It makes them look like arrogant old p-ricks.

 

[xgiovannix12]

im 24 years old I worked for a local contractor for 6 years driving class B trucks operating heavy equipment and doing most of his mechanic work. I also do laborer tasks aswell when needed. I grew up in the industry with my parents. Not to really brag about how hard I work. I normally leave work and go back to work doing my own thing. I got some older machines I paid off and do side work. Im in the process of starting small and getting bigger as the time comes.

Not many of my generation is like me sadly. I work hard for what I want and need and love doing it. My boss has gone thru so many laborers thru out the 6 years I worked for him. Sadly today no one wants to work . they just wanna collect that fancy check the government provides for them.

 

[DMiller]

Working for the utility as a Temporary full time interim worker with no benefits and no vacation to get into the company years ago I worked in a small town head quarters with a garage. We serviced and repaired the line trucks, trouble trucks, cars and pickups, cranes what ever the company could bring the three of us that worked there. After working like dogs thru the winter spring came in easy and the work slowed, I washed windows, cleaned the floor lift pits, even got some of the dysfunctional tools working better while the day foreman was on vacation.

He looked out the windows three days after getting back said "Damn, who cleaned the window to the fuel island, now they can see I am screwing off" never touched them again!! He later admitted he had considered doing the very same thing but just as got the gumption a call would come to go on a road call.

 

[Junkyard]

First legitimate dealership shop I worked in had me cleaning the men's restroom every morning. I'm sure it was their test. After I moved up the food chain the next guy didn't make it two weeks. He asked how long I did it, I told him until you came along. It was 8-9 months. I've always been of the "whatever it takes" mentality. I make the same scrubbing the porcelain as I do sweating my a$$ off outside. There are some tasks I consider distasteful but I never shirk them. Heck even at MF I may spend a day washing a drill rig. But you know what, it'll damn sure be clean, especially where I have to work on it!

Too much, too easy. I see and hear all the time having three teenagers. Not so much from my kids but some of their friends seem to have never heard the word "no".

What do you suppose we can do to help the next batch of youngsters get with the program? I can't wait to teach my boys, at least enough to help them decide what they want to do.

 

[92U 3406]

I've been a Red Seal HET for going on 5 years now, so I guess you can say I'm still a kid lol. I see a lot of kids my age in the trades as this is a very industrial type town I live in. I wouldn't trust many of them to fix my wheelbarrow though as most are only in the trades for the money. They don't care about getting better. They want the easy jobs they don't have to work hard at and can crank out in 30 minutes. Me, I'll jump at the opportunity to tackle diagnosing an issue 3 others have given up on. I actually get a little bit pissed off if they give that job to someone else lol.