Why Michigan Employers Have Difficulty Filling Skilled Trades Jobs [View all]

[Purveyor]

By Rick Haglund

Michigan’s recovery from its “lost decade” has sparked an ongoing debate about whether the state faces a shortage of skilled workers ready to fill available jobs, primarily in manufacturing and construction.

Employers say they can’t find enough qualified welders, tool-and-die makers, machine operators and others with the skills they need to rebuild their businesses.

But many economists are skeptical. They cite flat, or even declining, wages as evidence that the labor market is slack. If employers really were having a hard time finding qualified workers, they say, wages would be rising.

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Employers also want experienced workers. Only 4 percent of 150 online ads for skilled trades jobs studied by state officials said that employers were looking for entry-level workers and were willing to train them.

But the number of active apprenticeship programs in the state is down 50 percent from 2005, making it difficult for some to get the training they need.

At the same time, employers have been able to keep a tight lid on wages.

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http://www.mlive.com/business/index.ssf/2013/07/rick_haglund_why_employers_hav.html