Manufacturing recovery needs new skilled workers

Older employees leaving with experience, talent poses challenge

By Charlie Mathews; Source: The Herald Times Reporter April 12, 2011

Oshkosh Corporation recently had a job fair where there were 8,000 applicants for 600 positions. The specialty truck manufacturer hasn’t been able to fill them all and that doesn’t surprise economist Jeffrey Sachse.

"As we have moved into recovery, a major challenge is to identify what workers and skills the region needs to be more competitive," Sachse told a Tuesday gathering at The Chamber of Manitowoc County.

"The big demand we have now is finding people to fill new demand," Sachse said.

Many older workers in manufacturing are exiting and taking with them critical experience and skills, said Sachse, whose talk was titled, "Growth and Challenges in a Changing Economy — 2011 and Beyond."

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– Edited by Amanda McLeman, Plant Engineering, www.plantengineering.com