Explore within this space . How to advertise here

Editorial -- Freedom to choose your career.

The freedom that most distinguishes the United States from other countries is the ability of our citizens to make a wide array of choices. Consider how much latitude for choice exists in other countries and you start to realize that U.S. citizens have an un-matched freedom—as well as the economic incentive—to act on the choices they make.

This freedom to choose is at its most basic when Americans make choices about which careers to select and invest their talents in for their wealth-producing years.

There are a variety of motivators that go into the selection of a career. Some of these are: having fun; the expectation of being well compensated; exploring the unknown; using skills and knowledge in ways that make you feel productive; and, in the case of many family businesses, carrying on a tradition.

How does all of this fit into our view of manufacturing in the United States in the near term?

In November 2003, manufacturing jobs accounted for 11.3 percent of all U.S. jobs versus 32.1 percent in 1953. In total, have U.S. citizens suffered from this relative decline in the number of manufacturing jobs? I think most of us who can even vaguely remember 1953 would say that our lives are considerably better today than fifty years ago. 

Yes, I own cars, TVs, and many articles of clothing made overseas—in addition to many products made in the U.S. But for the most part they all perform as I want them to, and the price was consistent with the value I sought. I can’t really remember any purchase I’ve made in the past ten years that left me without a course of action to correct any deficiencies I may have experienced—ranging from exchanges to replacement to getting my money back. All of my purchases of foreign-made goods had some U.S. citizens employed in the value stream either as designers, marketers, sellers, trainers, service people, or other human components of a total value proposition. The point is that U.S. citizens are employed and are contributing to the sale of goods and services we need to live our lives regardless of where they are manufactured.

If you think about whether our country could defend itself and conduct wars during the last 50 years while losing manufacturing jobs, it appears that the answer was “yes.” 

The fact is that our citizens made choices about what they wanted to do with their lives in terms of careers, and, today, U.S. citizens have more choices and are choosing less often to be employed in manufacturing and more often to be employed in other fields. In addition, entrepreneurs and investors are choosing less often to create job opportunities in manufacturing in the U.S. today than they did fifty years ago.

According to the U.S DOL - Fastest growing occupations through 2012

Among the 30 fastest growing occupations, a total of 15 will be in the health field, seven will be computer-related, three will be environment-related and three will be in teaching.

What will be the fastest growing fields for employment in the next 10 to 20 years? The top fields according to Barron’s (1/5/04): 
• Registered nurses
• Physicians’ assistants
• Mental health workers
• Health-services entrepreneurs
• Biologists
• Neurologists
• Web designers 
• Marketing professionals
• Advertising writers
• Computer programmers
• Systems analysts
• Financial planners and personal bankers
• Assistant morticians
• Television personalities
• Actors and directors (movies and TV)
• Sports-related careers
• Gaming industry

You probably get the drift that the graying of baby-boomers will direct many of the choices made by people embarking on careers today.
The fields projected to show declines in employment over that same period are:
• Butchers
• Barbers
• Manufacturing workers
• Agricultural workers
• Secretaries 
• Clerks

ADVERTISEMENT . How to advertise here

See current U.S. DOL Occupational Projections
. U.S. Occupational Outlook
- The 10-year projections of economic growth, employment by industry and occupation, and labor force are widely used in career guidance, in planning education and training programs, and in studying long-range employment trends. http://www.jobwerx.com/news/Archives/employment-projections.html

What will be driving these trends in career choices? I believe the major factors will be: technology, globalization, the pursuit of leisure, demographics, wealth creation (both corporate and personal), and living healthy lives. There are arguments about the positive effects of globalization, but the trend is here to stay. Creative minds will always search for and develop new technologies. Whether it’s in the U.S. or elsewhere, people are looking for new ways to enjoy more leisure time. The populations of the most-developed nations are all living longer; less developed nations want to do the same. And everyone wants to enjoy a healthier life.

I think our future and the future of manufacturing in the U.S. will benefit from these trends. The picture of manufacturing’s future I see for the United States is of an industry full of many highly-profitable niches that produce high value components or end products Americans and the rest of the world prize. This industry will afford many fantastic choices for people who want to have fun, be well compensated, explore the unknown, use their skills and knowledge productively, and carry on an outstanding tradition. This industry will continue to be a vital part of our total economy, but it will offer fewer total career opportunities as the entire spectrum of career choices continues to expand.

Click here to view more current news articles