Marketing Manufacturing Careers Can Be A Tough Sell
Tell a class of ninth-graders that you’ve got a great idea for careers they could pursue in injection molding, and you’ll probably risk some rolled eyes.
But that isn’t stopping several Central Massachusetts organizations from taking on the challenge of trying to get more students and unemployed adults to consider preparing for manufacturing jobs.
100,000 Jobs To Fill
At a recent symposium sponsored by the Massachusetts Manufacturing Extension Partnership, Barry Bluestone, of the Center for Urban and Regional Policy at Northeastern University, presented the results of a study that suggests the loss of manufacturing jobs in the Bay State is leveling off. He said the industry will probably continue to lose some jobs, partly because of improved productivity.
But, thanks to the rapid aging of manufacturing workers and the absence of younger workers coming up to replace them, there will still be about 100,000 openings in Massachusetts factories in the next decade.
In particular, he said, there will be many openings in the pharmaceutical, cement, aerospace and architectural and structural products industries.
To fill those jobs, a number of initiatives are planned or are already in progress. The Central Massachusetts Regional Employment Board, along with sister organizations in North Central Massachusetts and Franklin County, recently received a $2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Labor to help dislocated workers, disadvantaged youth and veterans get jobs in science and technology fields.
Jeff Turgeon, executive director of the Worcester-based board, said the jobs he anticipates placing people in are largely manufacturing positions that require science, math and computer skills. But he acknowledged that it can be difficult to convince job seekers to consider those sorts of positions.
“In my experience it’s a difficult sell, especially when you’re talking about young people,” he said.
Even if a student, parent or out-of-work adult buys the idea that job opportunities in manufacturing will grow in the coming years, they may have plenty of other objections to the field. Historically, the typical factory has been dirty, loud and dangerous, and the jobs there have been mindlessly repetitive.
Cleaner, Less Boring
That’s still true of some manufacturing jobs, but the kind of high-tech positions that Bluestone says are poised for growth tend to be different. Turgeon said the manufacturers he sees growing in Central Massachusetts are highly automated, meaning that instead of standing in front of one machine many workers spend their days setting machines up, using computers to guide operations and planning the flow of production.
Kathy Rentsch of Quinsigamond Community College is involved in the Massachusetts Technology Education Collaborative’s efforts to educate students, families and teachers about the opportunities in manufacturing. She said that in many companies, workers with a little post-high school education can have a significant impact on the way a company does business.
“The technicians are really part of not only manufacturing a component or part but also looking at how to implement processes, maximize the efficiency… keep costs down,” she said.
And in some areas, like medical device manufacturing, the dirty factory floor is replaced by immaculate white clean rooms.
“You hear the hum of the machine, and you’ve got technicians in white garments,” Turgeon said. “It’s almost like more of an operating room environment than a traditional manufacturing environment.”
Jack Healy, director of operations at Massachusetts Manufacturing Extension Partnership of Worcester, said some of the fields he sees growing are design, tech support, quality control and engineering. He said that as manufacturing becomes more complex two particularly in-demand jobs are project manager and supply chain manager, both of which typically require two years of college for entry-level positions.
Healy said that as more manufacturers move to doing custom work employees have more interesting challenges to consider. Still, he said, some things about the industry haven’t changed.
“All of manufacturing is nothing but repetition,” he said. “The product you’re making has to be the same as the last product you made.”
Turgeon said manufacturing isn’t the ideal industry for everyone, but he hopes current efforts will encourage more people to at least consider it.
“It’s one of those things that it’s worth looking into for young people to find out what it is like today, as opposed to the stereotype,” he said.
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