Ford CEO says he has 5,000 open mechanic jobs with 6-figure salaries from the shortage of manually skilled workers: ‘We are in trouble in our country’

[jeepguy03]

The whole " Flat Rate " system is designed to make the dealer money and cause a mechanic to spend huge amounts of money to " beat the system ".
Can you imagine if the " Flat rate " system was applied everywhere ? Medical , realty , architecture , I.T. , sales.
People would totally freak out being payed only what " The Manual " allows .

It also encourages cutting corners.

 

[ColoJeep]

It also encourages cutting corners.

And , unless the problem is reoccurring in the model being worked on. It encourages excessive firing of the parts cannon !

 

[jeepguy03]

A dealership used to be probably the most knowledgable on a particular vehicle aside from specialty shops. That has quickly transformed to them just hiring techs straight out of school and teaching them only the basics on vehicles currently on the lot and under warranty. A friend worked as a service advisor at Ford for a short while before jumping ship for another job, and the stories he told me were wild. A combination of throwing parts at a problem to hope the vehicle makes it through warranty and upselling customers on services they don't need.

There was a guy on NAXJA years ago when I was a member who was a dealer service advisor back when XJs, YJs, and MJ Comanches were new. The wealth of knowledge he had on those vehicles was incredible. Now if you walk into a dealer service department they probably don't even know what oil weight your vehicle requires without looking it up.

 

[cliffish]

A dealership used to be probably the most knowledgable on a particular vehicle aside from specialty shops. That has quickly transformed to them just hiring techs straight out of school and teaching them only the basics on vehicles currently on the lot and under warranty. A friend worked as a service advisor at Ford for a short while before jumping ship for another job, and the stories he told me were wild. A combination of throwing parts at a problem to hope the vehicle makes it through warranty and upselling customers on services they don't need.

There was a guy on NAXJA years ago when I was a member who was a dealer service advisor back when XJs, YJs, and MJ Comanches were new. The wealth of knowledge he had on those vehicles was incredible. Now if you walk into a dealer service department they probably don't even know what oil weight your vehicle requires without looking it up.

yep, Was just at infinity dealership and the service guy was insisting my 2023 QX60 had a CVT,no it does not

 

[LJ owner]

Generally speaking, it all goes back to supply and demand (which isn't fixed), so there is no permanent best way.

Sadly, kids have been heavily marketed to colleges because it makes a ton of money for the schools and the student loan industry. I understand buyer beware, but there's a deep seeded evil involved when pushing blue-collar parents and their children in a certain direction as if it's necessary to have a good life (knowing damn well that there aren't enough seats at the table to make good on their claims).

Local community college ads annoy me the most with their manipulative messages about "providing a chance at a better life" (preying on the poorest and most ignorant) as if they are doomed if they don't go to college.

This doesn't even get into the skill sets lost due to slave labor doing much of the manufacturing over the past 30 years overseas and skilled US workers dying without an apprentice to carry their knowledge forward. Sprinkle some laziness, coddled existences, and classism in the mix and you get a problem that they are now trying to solve with robots and AI.

The College/University system is a massive fleece of the American pocketbook stealing from taxpayers through government funded student loans and again from those who attempt to self fund. The system supports bloated administrative salaries and buildings that are monuments to the institution. Adding to the theft are all the useless degrees that will never pay back. Having said that, I told both my daughters that when they graduated high school that I would fully fund a four year engineering degree if they maintained their GPA. Anything else they would be on their own.
I love trade schools but that would not been their wheelhouse.
Both graduated with honors this last year with starting salaries exceeding $80k. Electrical Engineers with an emphasis on power(Generation, Transmission and distribution) are in short supply. Kinda fun to talk shop with them.

 

[D's Jeep Wrld]

^ This. IIRC technicians often come out of trade school with $30K in debt, then have to buy $30K in tools, just to start at $30K.

And "six figures" sounds impressive but $100K doesn't go as far as it once went.

Yep 100k feels like a number one needs to make to live comfortably nowdays.

I've been netting close to 60k since 18, Im 21 Now but damn....I only got enough for my Bills,Food,etc. and some jeep parts
For the stuff I want to do in life,I have to make 100k! How? I'm planning on going to school to work on airplanes,Aviation mechanics start off at 46+ an hour,That's almost double than what I make ! I already like tinkering with stuff so that seems perfect for me

 

[steelhd]

Education shouldn't always be thought of in terms of financial ROI. There is nothing wrong with a college level education that ends up just being for the sake of education as long as a person can afford it. Its good for the brain and its good for society.

 

[LJ owner]

Yep 100k feels like a number one needs to make to live comfortably nowdays.

I've been netting close to 60k since 18, Im 21 Now but damn....I only got enough for my Bills,Food,etc. and some jeep parts
For the stuff I want to do in life,I have to make 100k! How? I'm planning on going to school to work on airplanes,Aviation mechanics start off at 46+ an hour,That's almost double than what I make ! I already like tinkering with stuff so that seems perfect for me

After just bashing the college system in my last post, there are some community colleges with great aviation programs. There are also some private institutions that will leave you in serious debt. Aviation A&Ps are in short supply and can do really well once they get their IA(inspection authority) certification. I would recommend trying to get hired by a local shop while going to school as your time served there will count towards experience although the pay isn't great when all you work is signed off by someone else. Best of luck on your journey.

 

[Viking Jeeper]

Modern day vehicles are unnecessarily complicated, ruined by governmental regulations (just like the government ruins anything and everything they touch). Working on cars is no longer enjoyable.

I saw a politician use TV's as an example of what happens when the government does not get involved. The government has never tried to make TVs better, cheaper, bigger and more accessible and look how all of that is true in the free market.

Everything the government has tried to make "better" is expensive as hell and not all that great, just like healthcare.

 

[InOmaha]

The College/University system is a massive fleece of the American pocketbook stealing from taxpayers through government funded student loans and again from those who attempt to self fund. The system supports bloated administrative salaries and buildings that are monuments to the institution. Adding to the theft are all the useless degrees that will never pay back. Having said that, I told both my daughters that when they graduated high school that I would fully fund a four year engineering degree if they maintained their GPA. Anything else they would be on their own.
I love trade schools but that would not been their wheelhouse.
Both graduated with honors this last year with starting salaries exceeding $80k. Electrical Engineers with an emphasis on power(Generation, Transmission and distribution) are in short supply. Kinda fun to talk shop with them.

We did the same, but my kids couldn't pass an engineering class to save their lives. So that gene didn't pass on from me.

They got micro biology degress. One went on to Vet school. The other to Med school.

So still useful degrees, just not cool mechanical engineering degrees like mine. I've been in the power industry 32 years.

 

[InOmaha]

Yep 100k feels like a number one needs to make to live comfortably nowdays.

I've been netting close to 60k since 18, Im 21 Now but damn....I only got enough for my Bills,Food,etc. and some jeep parts
For the stuff I want to do in life,I have to make 100k! How? I'm planning on going to school to work on airplanes,Aviation mechanics start off at 46+ an hour,That's almost double than what I make ! I already like tinkering with stuff so that seems perfect for me

The guys that work on the power line crews start at $53/hr here. With overtime they are some of the highest paid people in a utility.

 

[Chris]

I saw a politician use TV's as an example of what happens when the government does not get involved. The government has never tried to make TVs better, cheaper, bigger and more accessible and look how all of that is true in the free market.

Everything the government has tried to make "better" is expensive as hell and not all that great, just like healthcare.

Indeed, unlike the free market the government does not produce anything at all. Consider how often they add rules and regulation in comparison to how often they remove rules and regulations.

There isn’t a single sector the government has gotten involved in that hasn't been made worse.

 

[LJ owner]

The guys that work on the power line crews start at $53/hr here. With overtime they are some of the highest paid people in a utility.

Severe winter storms are huge paydays for them but its hard work and they deserve every penny

 

[jeepguy03]

Education shouldn't always be thought of in terms of financial ROI. There is nothing wrong with a college level education that ends up just being for the sake of education as long as a person can afford it. Its good for the brain and its good for society.

I disagree, and I work at a university. When a 4 year degree at a state school can cost upwards of $200k+ it is very necessary to consider the financial ROI. Universities are a business. College is not for everyone, but for those that attend they should certainly have a plan for how they want to use their degree.

 

[D's Jeep Wrld]

The guys that work on the power line crews start at $53/hr here. With overtime they are some of the highest paid people in a utility.

Dayuum.....I work with 3 phase power all the time where I'm at due to guys smacking the conduit for the A/c units with their forklifts for example,Then needing to run new conduit and wiring for the 30-40 Ton units that the warehouse uses where im at. But its not the true HV stuff like the power line guys do!

Is it Oncor or what? I wonder what the requirements are?
But 1st I need to get my GED! I dropped out and started working full time at the age of 16

 

[KennethS]

But you can also order one online

And soon it may deliver itself to you.

 

[InOmaha]

Dayuum.....I work with 3 phase power all the time where I'm at due to guys smacking the conduit for the A/c units with their forklifts for example,Then needing to run new conduit and wiring for the 30-40 Ton units that the warehouse uses where im at. But its not the true HV stuff like the power line guys do!

Is it Oncor or what? I wonder what the requirements are?
But 1st I need to get my GED! I dropped out and started working full time at the age of 16

You need to take a 9 month or so course to handle linework and get a CDL. The first thing they do is make you climb the tallest pole. To weed out those out of shape and more importantly afraid of heights.

This one is for the next level up at $57/hr.

https://jobsp.oppd.com/psc/jobs/EMP...SEARCH_FL.GBL?Page=HRS_APP_SCHJOB_FL&Action=U

Internships pay ~$22/hr.

Linemen make more than starting engineers in a utility.

 

[RangerTJ]

$100K a year can be a comfortable income depending on where you live.

$100K in boondocks Mississippi is living high on the hog. $100K in San Francisco is almost poverty.

Also, making $100K doing a job you hate is a losing proposition.

Get a trade certificate/degree in something that you like and are interested in and you will be much happier.

My son was working on a Computer Science degree with emphasis on cybersecurity. He was being recruited by several of the 3 letter government agencies.

He gave it up because he discovered that he hated it and wanted to do something outside.

 

[TJMexico]

I've got a brother-in-law making 180k a year as a union plumber (overtime included).

College is a scam for anything other than STEM degrees. We should never listen to a single thing they tell us. All the advice they give is bad from "take the vax and you'll have immunity" to "go to college and get a degree" to "red meat is bad for you". All you have to do is look at their track record. They're wrong about everything.

I have heard said that one should not attribute to malevolence what can be attributed to stupidity.

I say, nobody's that stupid and this is all malevolence.

 

[steelhd]

I disagree, and I work at a university. When a 4 year degree at a state school can cost upwards of $200k+ it is very necessary to consider the financial ROI. Universities are a business. College is not for everyone, but for those that attend they should certainly have a plan for how they want to use their degree.

I wrote - There is nothing wrong with a college level education that ends up just being for the sake of education as long as a person can afford it.

But somehow you wanted to disagree. Reading is fundamental.