  Lilpup Member Username: Lilpup Post Number: 3371 Registered: 06-2004 |
Are there any shipyards still actively building? Saw this today and am wondering why we never hear about these employee shortages elsewhere that people from here could be skilled to fill. | ||
Sailor_rick Member Username: Sailor_rick Post Number: 202 Registered: 02-2004 |
The closest to Detroit is the Toledo Shipyards which mostly does repair and refitting. There's a few major shipyards in Wisconsin including Marinette and Sturgeon Bay. Many a winter we've "laid up" in Sturgeon Bay which is akin to out Traverse City or Petoskey, always a fun mix of sailors, shipyard workers and "Cheese Head-Fudgies" in the bars at night. Good point Lilpup, I know many of the industrial skills we posses here could translate to the yards but it tends to be cyclical and damn brutal work at that. It's like building giant car by hand in an ice storm but if ya' gotta eat... | ||
Bigb23 Member Username: Bigb23 Post Number: 377 Registered: 11-2007 |
They probably pay starting welders $9-10/hr to start. Considering that when my Navy ship was in Dry dock in Long Beach,Cal. in 1976, the "yard birds" made $18.00/hr back then! His "top" welder at $18.50/hr is probably an inspector or Foreman. I just searched Craigslist jobs in most of Pennsylvania, and saw no "FREE" ads for shipyard welders going back 45 days. Which leaves me to believe his plan was always to have Robots and low wage "imported" workers.--- "Some shipyards have temporarily hired foreign laborers, including from Mexico and countries in Eastern Europe, under a federal program that allows businesses to obtain so-called H2B visas if they prove efforts to hire locally were unsuccessful." Pay a trained and skilled worker a living wage and benefits and they will beat down the door. We are out here. Especially for a dangerous job such as that. | ||
Lefty2 Member Username: Lefty2 Post Number: 1018 Registered: 07-2007 |
Say, "My brother shovels ashes in the shipyard" while holding your tongue.  | ||
Sumas Member Username: Sumas Post Number: 9 Registered: 01-2008 |
Wyandotte used to be a major hub for ship building. My great grandparents came from Wales to build ships. My great grandfather, a skilled tinsmith, was woo-ed here with a job offer. | ||
Johnlodge Member Username: Johnlodge Post Number: 4844 Registered: 10-2003 |
If we ever go to war with China, we'll have to ask them to build us some ships first. |
