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posted by cmn32480 on Friday August 25 2017, @03:18PM   Printer-friendly
from the do-we-need-a-bridge dept.

The idea that American workers are being left in the dust because they lack technological savvy does not stand up to scrutiny. Our focus should be on coordination and communication between workers and employers.

Technology enthusiasts and entrepreneurs are among the loudest voices declaiming this conventional wisdom (see "The Hunt for Qualified Workers").

Two recent developments have heightened debate over the idea of a "skills gap": an unemployment rate below 5 percent, and the growing fear that automation will render less-skilled workers permanently unemployable.

Proponents of the idea tell an intuitively appealing story: information technology has hit American firms like a whirlwind, intensifying demand for technical skills and leaving unprepared American workers in the dust. The mismatch between high employer requirements and low employee skills leads to bad outcomes such as high unemployment and slow economic growth.

The problem is, when we look closely at the data, this story doesn't match the facts. What's more, this view of the nation's economic challenges distracts us from more productive ways of thinking about skills and economic growth while promoting unproductive hand-wringing and a blinkered focus on only the supply side of the labor market—that is, the workers.

https://www.technologyreview.com/s/608707/the-myth-of-the-skills-gap/

What do you think, is there a shortage of skilled workers ??


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  • (Score: 5, Informative) by Runaway1956 on Friday August 25 2017, @03:44PM (3 children)

    by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Friday August 25 2017, @03:44PM (#558910) Journal

    There is a shortage of Americans willing to work for a dollar a day, or even ten dollars a day. In much of the country, there are plenty of people willing to work for a hundred dollars a day.

    Oh - does that sound like a lot of money? A hundred dollars a day? Does that scare anyone? Well - guy earns $500/week, Uncle takes about $100. That leaves our hero with about $400/week, or $1600/month. Rent - minimum $500. Food, couple hundred. Transportation, maybe he's lucky, and he can get to work all month for fifty bucks. Utilties, another couple hundred. What's left? Not enough to raise a family.

    How about corporations pay what people are worth, and stop paying those fatassed CEO's multimillion dollar bonuses for wrecking companies?

    THERE is a shortage! America has a serious shortage of competent management. Maybe we can import some CEO's from China or India?

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  • (Score: 5, Informative) by TheGratefulNet on Friday August 25 2017, @04:05PM (1 child)

    by TheGratefulNet (659) on Friday August 25 2017, @04:05PM (#558927)

    I was browsing linkedin and came across this posting:

    https://www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/387705974 [linkedin.com]

    look at the seniority level: 'entry level'

    look at the experience asked for: 10+ years on this and that.

    now, either they already have an h1b lined up and are just posting this to cover their ass (or to scare away locals); OR they truly are as clueless as they seem to have become, lately.

    there is no shortage of skilled workers, but there seems to be a shortage of skilled MANAGERS who know the diff between try level and extreme senior. 10+ years is senior to principal level, NOT entry level, dammit.

    --
    "It is now safe to switch off your computer."
    • (Score: 4, Informative) by Runaway1956 on Friday August 25 2017, @04:20PM

      by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Friday August 25 2017, @04:20PM (#558935) Journal

      Wow. Saw youre post, clicked the link, read the listing. I flipped back here, to post a flippant remark. Then it really hit me. "Entry level". FFS, they're asking for a four year degree, PLUS eight year's expereince? And, it's "entry level"?? Maybe they're trying to recruit Methuselah.

      Oh, the flippant remarks. They forgot a couple of qualifications. "Must be able to fellate submerged in a hot tub." "A golf handicap less than 20 will disqualify any applicant." I'm sure we could come up with some more "meaningful" qualifications.

  • (Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 26 2017, @04:36PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 26 2017, @04:36PM (#559492)

    It would be rather nice if corporate leadership would be patriotic, placing the health of our nation above the wealth of companies and their leaders. That'll never happen. It's about as likely as workers in a communist "worker's paradise" not being lazy. Companies will want cheap labor; there is no changing this.

    It is the proper role of government to say "no", to a certain extent. I don't mean minimum wage, which causes quite a bit of trouble. We need to make international outsourcing stop being cost-effective. We need to make bringing in foreign workers stop being cost-effective. Blocking a few types of abusive practices (for example, random scheduling of many low-paid workers that prevents taking a second job) is also reasonable.

    Trouble is, mostly our government doesn't work for it. It works for corporations.

    The real political battle happens between corporations. For example: news media companies, music/movie media companies, big web sites, software companies, ISPs, and electronics vendors all battle each other over laws like SOPA and DMCA and COPPA and TPP. Meanwhile, the public is distracted by superficial easy-to-understand issues that generate outrage: abortion, homo marriage, flag burning, school prayer, pedophiles, pot, assisted suicide, etc. News media companies encourage this.

    So the voter is distracted away from issues that are vital to our country. There is nobody patriotic who will hold politicians feet to the fire.