Wisconsin's manufacturing lacking candidates with basic skills of employability

[Greg Bernhardt]

I was reading my local cities online newspaper and found this little gem of a story about what is ailing the manufacturing industry in the Midwest region.

http://www.jsonline.com/business/milwaukee-7-will-work-to-polish-manufacturings-image-133080973.html

Basic math! Shows how important it is to get an education involving mathematics. The jobs are there. The candidates skills are not!

Last week's session, however, also found an overwhelming consensus that one of the main difficulties lies in finding candidates with basic skills of employability - the "soft skills" that include reliability, flexibility and basic math.

 

[Chronos]

There is still a basic fear factor in the manufacturing that makes hiring a very tough choice for most companies. Over regulation and lack of protection in the industrial sector has made hiring people a poison pill for decades [remember Ross Perot's 'giant sucking noise' warning about NAFTA?]. Most US manufacturers currently protect profitability by pushing employees to work harder and for longer hours. Our current govenment policies are pushing us to the brink of becoming a third world economy, IMO.