Post: #1

This forum has already given enormous value, so I want to post this interview with the CEO of the world's largest temp agency here ... might be interesting for those of you who are american citizens, live on a "shoestring" budget and have the choice between going into the red for a college degree or trying their hand at skilled manufacturing (maybe with preparation being a community college instead of that coveted Ivy League degree...):

Manpower CEO interview / Business Week

Post: #2

(09-07-2013 04:13 AM)MunichSux Wrote:  This forum has already given enormous value, so I want to post this interview with the CEO of the world's largest temp agency here ... might be interesting for those of you who are american citizens, live on a "shoestring" budget and have the choice between going into the red for a college degree or trying their hand at skilled manufacturing (maybe with preparation being a community college instead of that coveted Ivy League degree...):

Manpower CEO interview / Business Week

Interesting article. Welcome to RVF, MunichSux.

For future reference, when you post articles like this it would be helpful to the forum if you copy pasted the article into the thread or if you copy pasted the parts of the article that you think are valuable or interesting.

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BBW: What’s wrong with manufacturing?

Joerres: We’ve lost the honor in technical skills and apprenticeship jobs. I’m 53. I was the first part of the knowledge economy. [The message was] everybody has to go to college. That was kind of a mono theme. We need to have a little bit more complicated message. There are all these jobs over here. They can be a plumber and make $80,000 a year. There’s this perverse sense that it’s better to be a history major and wait tables than to be a plumber and make four times as much.


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Yes, this is a huge problem. I agree that too many people are going to college just for a piece of paper that lets them get over some arbitrary hump so that they can end up being baristas at Starbucks.

I think quite a few guys working in the oil sands now have humanities bachelors degrees and ended up learning a technical skill in a 6 week timeframe that immediately gave them a huge competitive advantage in the workforce.

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Post: #3

Yes, if only there was a way to tell kids to go against conventional wisdom if they want a successful career. An advisor or counsellor should say "Jimmy, take a look at the careers all of your friends are on track for and choose something different, something that no one has heard of or that your friends turn their noses up at. That is how to pick a successful career with minimal effort"

Post: #4

So as hundred thousands of people have to work a shitty low paid on-demand job handed to them from a slave master like "manpower", there is a shortage in skilled people? Does "manpower" support their slaves in additional education and training with their 10-20% profit margin per worker?
They got 1200 applications for a welder and hired the best 50? Thats the top 4,1 %. Training another 50 people was more expensive than having the jobs vacant?
Cry me a river.

Post: #5

It's true. I know a plumber that makes over $100k. Trade jobs are not dead. It's manufacturing(factory) jobs that are dead. If you're going the IT route stick with networking. Engineering degrees will get you technician or field service type of jobs. If you're into engineering look into Quality Assurance or Quality Engineering. It's a good path. It requires expert level skill, it's fun and pays very well.

Try http://www.indeed.com it's my favorite job search site. It's like Google for job searching.

Post: #6

I was fortunate to come out of the military when corporations had realized that we were a goldmine. Guys in my MOS came out starting at 100K in Silicon Valley with 90% international travel. Others in N.C. making 50K base pay w/ unlimited overtime.

The change occurred when companies realized how little college grads knew. The first job I mentioned hired grads, but they couldn't communicate with the customer, navigate through airports, not solve problems. In short, they had to be babysat. That's a lot of money to pay for someone that can't function even at the basic level.

I work with grads that sit and stare at an engine complaining that it's doing what in "theory" it shouldn't be. But you see what they are doing? Standing there staring. There's no substitute for real world experience. You only learn the trades by getting your hands dirty.

Search through indeed and see how the job descriptions breakdown who they look for. Experience is preferred over education in many cases, with military being a plus. As was said earlier, trades aren't dead and won't go away, but know that you need to be multi-skilled now. Become a jack of all trades and get good on all fronts. That's what companies are looking for and the market is competitive.

I'm an expert in many fields, if you guys have ANY questions please ask. I love this shit! Got a million anecdotes too.

Post: #7

(09-07-2013 08:04 AM)void Wrote:  So as hundred thousands of people have to work a shitty low paid on-demand job handed to them from a slave master like "manpower", there is a shortage in skilled people? Does "manpower" support their slaves in additional education and training with their 10-20% profit margin per worker?
They got 1200 applications for a welder and hired the best 50? Thats the top 4,1 %. Training another 50 people was more expensive than having the jobs vacant?
Cry me a river.

Temp agency do offer solid paying jobs, calling them "Slave masters" is not rational. Imagine you are an engineer and it's 16 bucks / hour via Manpower or 9 bucks / hour as a Wal-Mart associate.

Post: #8

(09-07-2013 09:18 AM)MunichSux Wrote:  

(09-07-2013 08:04 AM)void Wrote:  So as hundred thousands of people have to work a shitty low paid on-demand job handed to them from a slave master like "manpower", there is a shortage in skilled people? Does "manpower" support their slaves in additional education and training with their 10-20% profit margin per worker?
They got 1200 applications for a welder and hired the best 50? Thats the top 4,1 %. Training another 50 people was more expensive than having the jobs vacant?
Cry me a river.

Temp agency do offer solid paying jobs, calling them "Slave masters" is not rational. Imagine you are an engineer and it's 16 bucks / hour via Manpower or 9 bucks / hour as a Wal-Mart associate.

How else would you name the business model of renting out people/labour and cash in on their skills without adding any value in the process?
You get to work like a freelancer, earning less than the employees of the company. Temp agencies are the last option when searching for a job.

Post: #9

I've come to experience them as quite fair, never making false promises. They know they'll never be the first choice for people looking for employment, at the same time there are people - that's why I chose the example - who are highly qualified but for what reasons ever will have big trouble finding anything else but a "McJob" in direct employment. For them, it can be a bridge into a job that matches their qualification.

Post: #10

(09-07-2013 10:07 AM)void Wrote:  

(09-07-2013 09:18 AM)MunichSux Wrote:  

(09-07-2013 08:04 AM)void Wrote:  So as hundred thousands of people have to work a shitty low paid on-demand job handed to them from a slave master like "manpower", there is a shortage in skilled people? Does "manpower" support their slaves in additional education and training with their 10-20% profit margin per worker?
They got 1200 applications for a welder and hired the best 50? Thats the top 4,1 %. Training another 50 people was more expensive than having the jobs vacant?
Cry me a river.

Temp agency do offer solid paying jobs, calling them "Slave masters" is not rational. Imagine you are an engineer and it's 16 bucks / hour via Manpower or 9 bucks / hour as a Wal-Mart associate.

How else would you name the business model of renting out people/labour and cash in on their skills without adding any value in the process?
You get to work like a freelancer, earning less than the employees of the company. Temp agencies are the last option when searching for a job.

A service for people who are unable to find employment.

If you don't like the terms of service, don't use it.

Post: #11

I obviously can only speak for us Germans, but here the labor laws are still relatively rigid even after hotly debated and fought reform of the welfare state that went by the name "Agenda 2010". Employers here gain incredible flexibility because they can fire a temp on daily notice which is not possible otherwise.

Even blue collar folks can get well paying jobs if they are lent into a car giant like BMW or Mercedes Benz - around 18 US$ / hour is possible, and we are not talking about engineering jobs or jobs that require academic credentials. If you are living rent-free, this is damn good money !