Profoundly Disconnected - Mike Rowe

[PugnacAutMortem]

Are those the only options, student loans or government work. There are lots of jobs that can be done without student loans. They would probably be better for your comunity and the country as a whole than becoming another government "worker". Taxpayer dollars pay for enough government non-workers, we dont need any more. People complain about high taxes and having to borrow 70 cent of every dollar our government spends and then they want to get on the payroll. We might as well all sign up to work for the government and they can just give us a weekly allowance, But I guess that would be a little like communism, and we can all see how well that worked out.

Forgive me if I'm misunderstanding...but are you using "government work" and "working in a trade" interchangably? Because correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't belive working in a trade is the same thing as working for the government. Unless you're talking about unionized trades...but even then that's not "government work".

[dirtrulz]

I dont consider them the same. The options were to get a paycheck from the government or have student loans. If you are getting a paycheck from a government entity then you work for said entity. My point was that a large portion of the workers being paid by the different governments, city, state and federal, dont actually work, and that we dont need more of them to not work and pull a paycheck. I work in a trade and have dont work for a government. Working in a trade does not require student loans. I have student loans and am almost done paying, unlike like many out there who dont bother to pay it back.

I find it interesting how every job opening for the government has tons of people applying but a lot of other jobs cant get filled because they actually require a person to work. The place I work for is looking for laborers, it pays 15 or so an hour. We hire guys, they work for a day and decide it is too hard and dont show up the next day. The best workers we have are from mexico. The americans want that cushy city job where they just sit in their truck all day. I actually worked with a guy whose dad worked for the city. He had a garage built with an extra tall door so his city truck could fit in it. He would check in the morning and go home and nap in his truck in the garage with the door closed. He said he actually worked maybe a single day a week, and nobody cared. Talked to another guy with the highway department who spent every working day for a couple of weeks driving around in a plow truck, no snow. It had been an easy winter so they had a huge fuel budget to use up or they wouldnt be able to ask for a larger one next year. They couldnt move the money to another department, it had to be used on fuel for snow removal.

[PugnacAutMortem]

I dont consider them the same. The options were to get a paycheck from the government or have student loans. If you are getting a paycheck from a government entity then you work for said entity. My point was that a large portion of the workers being paid by the different governments, city, state and federal, dont actually work, and that we dont need more of them to not work and pull a paycheck. I work in a trade and have dont work for a government. Working in a trade does not require student loans. I have student loans and am almost done paying, unlike like many out there who dont bother to pay it back.

I find it interesting how every job opening for the government has tons of people applying but a lot of other jobs cant get filled because they actually require a person to work. The place I work for is looking for laborers, it pays 15 or so an hour. We hire guys, they work for a day and decide it is too hard and dont show up the next day. The best workers we have are from mexico. The americans want that cushy city job where they just sit in their truck all day. I actually worked with a guy whose dad worked for the city. He had a garage built with an extra tall door so his city truck could fit in it. He would check in the morning and go home and nap in his truck in the garage with the door closed. He said he actually worked maybe a single day a week, and nobody cared. Talked to another guy with the highway department who spent every working day for a couple of weeks driving around in a plow truck, no snow. It had been an easy winter so they had a huge fuel budget to use up or they wouldnt be able to ask for a larger one next year. They couldnt move the money to another department, it had to be used on fuel for snow removal.

Ok then my question now is where did the "everyone wants on the government payroll" comment come from?

[kfd82]

Ok then my question now is where did the "everyone wants on the government payroll" comment come from?

Possibly because there is a perception that .gov jobs come benefits (health insurance, pensions, etc.) without waiting half a year or more to qualify for them. I don't know how accurate that perception is; I share it too, with paranoid misgivings. As someone who has been 'blessed' with a lifelong chronic illness, I need a job that will pay enough (in either wages and/or benefits) for me to afford the medical care to keep me functioning. At this point in time, being on the government payroll seems to be the only way to achieve that.

[MAP]

I'm a semester away from getting my associate arts degree and had been planning on continuing to university for my BA in CRJ so I could make a career out of law enforcement, but now I'm not so sure because I've been hearing even guys with a combat mos military background with college are having a hard time even getting past the interviews at many law enforcement areas in CO because of the high amount of applications and guys with LEO experience and already POST certified. I've been moving to the fence to finishing my A.A and using the rest of my G.I Bill in some sort of trade school. Advice? thoughts?

I retired 8/11 after 27 years working as an LEO in NJ. I was fortunate to rise through the ranks and retire as Chief. LE career seeks have a much different road then what I traveled.

First, finish your AA in CJ. Immediately, make a list of LE Agencies you want to work for both in CO and outside the State. Contact each agency and find out exactly what background and education they want for an initial hire. Also find out their hiring expectations for the next 5 years. From this list you'll have an idea if you need to get started in LE. If everyone wants a BA then you'll know what you need. If they only require an AA I wouldn't go further unless the GI bill is paying for it. Whatever you do don't incur educational debt.

If you are interested in a trade look at CNC machine programing. My understanding is that there is not enough programers to fill the positions.

Good luck,

Mike

[dirtrulz]

Ok then my question now is where did the "everyone wants on the government payroll" comment come from?

If given the option what would you take, a government job or private sector job. Most will choose government. You dont live under a rock do you

[dirtrulz]

Possibly because there is a perception that .gov jobs come benefits (health insurance, pensions, etc.) without waiting half a year or more to qualify for them. I don't know how accurate that perception is; I share it too, with paranoid misgivings. As someone who has been 'blessed' with a lifelong chronic illness, I need a job that will pay enough (in either wages and/or benefits) for me to afford the medical care to keep me functioning. At this point in time, being on the government payroll seems to be the only way to achieve that.

Just wait till obamacare kicks in and all will be good. We are going to need to find some more taxpayers to pay for all this stuff.

[Tinelement]

Great thread!

My wife and I have this conversation all the time. Her a grad of CU, me a tradesmans, we are always talking about our kids future. It's usually a pretty interesting conversation!!!

I will always push trade over a bachelor in Business Managment. Always!

[dirtrulz]

It would kind of have to depend on what your kids end up being interested in. Not everyone is cut out to be in trades. Some are just not good with their hands. I would never try to convince someone not to go to college if they were interested in something that would benefit from it. I would never convince someone to go to college just to say that my kid was college educated. I think some parents think it is a reflection on them if their kids dont go for higher education.

It is amazing how many highly educated college grads are ill prepared for the real world.