Boom Need Brickie Army

[delboypass]

The Sun reporting on skills crisis

Skills crisis - please report if you are a brickin, plumber elecrician etc, 350,000 needed, must be polish or irish it seems.....

GB makes a rare comment says that UK economy is booming because of this shortage ;-))

Because all the inhabitants are sitting on welfare?

[deano]

The Sun reporting on skills crisis

Skills crisis - please report if you are a brickin, plumber elecrician etc, 350,000 needed, must be polish or irish it seems.....

GB makes a rare comment says that UK economy is booming because of this shortage ;-))

Because all the inhabitants are sitting on welfare?

And why are they sitting on welfare. Because they can't afford to come off and work for the low wages the construction industry are now offering. The Poles can and will do it for less - the CBI want further migration to complete wage deflation for the construction industry, as has already happened in the hospitallity and agricultural industries.

As for skilled workers. I know for a fact that many Poles turn up on site and expect to be trained on the job. They often have a made up work history that can not be verified because it is from Poland. Imagine going to the job center and being told to have a go at being a carpenter, if you don't like it try being a plumber - that's what they do. The British are not afforded the same opportunity.

I can see a perfect storm brewing.

deano

Edited June 6, 2006 by deano

[2005]

We have a skills shortage because NL abolished the skilled 'working class' by pushing tens of thousands of perfectly capable young men (and women) onto 'media studies' degrees instead of good apprenticeships.

There is nothing wrong with being a brickie or a plumber - it used to be good trade and an honest days work for an honest days pay.

But NL ended all that when they decided that everyone should go to university regardless of where their talents or interests lay.

We now have thousands of graduates scratching their head wondering why that 3rd class degree in media and cultural studies hasn't got them that prized job at a blue chip company in the city while the UK is importing thousands of east europeans with dodgy credentials.

You couldn't make it up.

[Dames]

Get rid of the 13 week rule and you might get the likes of me actually taking on an apprentice.

Tried once , too expensive , too much paperwork ( you have to 'Employ' them ).

Until such times there will be a continued shortage of skilled labour coming through.

Said this would happen 10+ years ago .

Dames :angry:

[Guest Guy_Montag]

Reminds me of what I heard about the Rome empire, the vast majority of the wealth was held by a few people who provided bread & entertainment for the proles, while slaves & incomers did all the work.

[Robbrent]

We have a skills shortage because NL abolished the skilled 'working class' by pushing tens of thousands of perfectly capable young men (and women) onto 'media studies' degrees instead of good apprenticeships.

There is nothing wrong with being a brickie or a plumber - it used to be good trade and an honest days work for an honest days pay.

But NL ended all that when they decided that everyone should go to university regardless of where their talents or interests lay.

We now have thousands of graduates scratching their head wondering why that 3rd class degree in media and cultural studies hasn't got them that prized job at a blue chip company in the city while the UK is importing thousands of east europeans with dodgy credentials.

You couldn't make it up.

So you do not remember the Tories abolishing proper apprenticeships then. the roots to this come down to that, the industry in the 80's thought that it did not need the traditional apprenticeship system so they almost abolished it, that is the root cause of this.

The industry also has a problem with security of employment, granted when times are good, money is good, but when times are bad there is no security, it's hardly the career for those wanting a mortgage

[dnd]

Reminds me of what I heard about the Rome empire, the vast majority of the wealth was held by a few people who provided bread & entertainment for the proles, while slaves & incomers did all the work.

Nothing changes...

Very clever though - drive wage inflation down through immigration and outsourcing and hide real inflation figures to keep the house/consumer market booming

Problem with that is the real inflation will continue to climb until people either reach unservicable debt levels or simply reign back their spending

Still, should last until the next election....

Edited June 6, 2006 by dnd

[Marina]

So you do not remember the Tories abolishing proper apprenticeships then. the roots to this come down to that, the industry in the 80's thought that it did not need the traditional apprenticeship system so they almost abolished it, that is the root cause of this.

The industry also has a problem with security of employment, granted when times are good, money is good, but when times are bad there is no security, it's hardly the career for those wanting a mortgage

A way too simplistic view. The reason the apprenticeship system died is that, once trained, most apprentices left their employer either to start up on their own or to work for a rival that did not run an apprenticeship scheme. The days when you did an apprenticeship in a factory employing a thousand people and worked there all your life disappeared for a whole host of reasons - like the general death of manufacturing and the ever increasing competition from the removal of trade barriers.

Construction is a classic example. You could train as a brickie for one of the big builders like Wimpeys and, when you finished your apprenticeship you might be paid (for example) £1 an hour. So you're getting £40 a week. Bloke in the pub working for a sub-contractor tells you he is getting £80 a week - and paying little or no tax.

In the same way that people now have to pay for degrees, youngsters that want a trade are going to have to pay to learn it.

[Dames]

The industry also has a problem with security of employment

But thats part of the risk of being self employed!

I was happy to train the lad I took on for nout even if it meant he'd go after learning his trade . I felt I was returning the opportunity to someone which I'd been given years ago.

I was taught my trade , stopped 18% ( or what ever it was back then ) from my pay and I did the rest , simple.

But now , well it's joke frankly, especially coupled with the CSCS ' Voulantry' scheme ( skills cards )

The plain truth is that the builders aren't interested in your skills card ( which will cost me around £400-£500 ) , they are more concerned that you have the Health and safety card ( £20 ) . This basically means they can pass the buck of accidents on to the subbie imho.

The final insult to me was that the bloke who was going to be checking me out for my skills card , had been tiling for less time than I had lol.

Moan over , soz.

D

Edited June 6, 2006 by Dames