In its Labor Day Report 2005, the National Association of Manufacturers (Washington) warns that manufacturing will employ fewer and fewer people in low-skill jobs. Tomorrow's manufacturing jobs will be for those with education in science, engineering and mathematics, and for those with high-skill technical training.
In fact, the single most important issue facing the U.S. automotive industry in the next 5 to 10 years is the looming skilled labor shortage, says Kim Hill, automotive communities program director for the Center for Automotive Research (Ann Arbor, MI). This shortage will have a direct impact on the bottom line. Senior automotive executives predict the shortage in skilled labor will cost individual companies $50 million on average over the next 5 years, according to a survey commissioned by Advanced Technology Services Inc. (Peoria, IL).