Bert Dirschell
Centertown
Dear Editor:
Opportunity abounds in the US right now. This is great news!
Jay Timmons, CEO of the National Association of Manufacturers, says that there are currently 500,000 unfilled manufacturing jobs in the U.S. Unless something changes, that number is expected to grow to 2.4 million in less than 10 years. Recently I watched a segment where Ryan Goertzen, vice president workforce development at AAR, talked about the unfilled job openings in aircraft maintenance. AAR has partnered with several colleges around the country. If you are accepted into their EAGLE program they pay most of the tuition costs required to become FCC certified.
In a second quarter 2019 poll of manufacturers, 80 percent said they are optimistic about their company's outlook while 69 percent said their inability to find skilled workers was their top challenge.
Why can't U.S. businesses find qualified workers? It isn't because we don't spend enough on education. U.S. public spending for primary and secondary education consistently ranks us in the top 5 of the 30+ nations tracked by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development.
It can't be because of health issues. We should have the healthiest workforce in our history. Prior to 1965 the federal government spent virtually nothing for Medicaid (health care for the indigent), in 1999 spending was $108 billion, 2019 Medicaid spending was over $400 billion. In addition, spending on federal "Health Insurance Assistance" increased from zero in 1999 to $50 billion in 2019.
Why have so many chosen not to enter the workforce? Twenty years ago, December 1999, our Labor Force Participation Rate (LFPR) was 67.1 percent, in 2006, prior to the start of the recession, it was over 66, in October 2019 it was only 63.3. Every point increase in the LFPR adds 2.6 million people to those employed, or at least those looking for work.
I suggest that one answer is that every succeeding generation has more people who think someone else owes them a living. More are interested in what government can extract from others and hand to them than they are in taking advantage of available opportunities. We are simply getting more of the negative behavior we have chosen to ignore, or even reward.
I eagerly await alternate views on why so many have chosen not to take advantage of today's opportunities.