Article

2026-01-08 Economy

The $120,000 job that NO American wants to do... even though there are thousands of vacancies

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Posted by Skidmark 2026-01-08 00:00|| E-Mail|| Front Page|| [1776 views ] Top

1 Well, it's a lot harder to qualify for a mechanic's license than get a college degree.

Posted by Grom the Affective 2026-01-08 02:14|| 2026-01-08 02:14|| Front Page Top

2 ...Nowadays

Posted by Grom the Affective 2026-01-08 03:44|| 2026-01-08 03:44|| Front Page Top

3 you're right grom, you have to have common sense. Not a lot of that going around these days.

Posted by chris 2026-01-08 04:42|| 2026-01-08 04:42|| Front Page Top

4 The auto mechanic trade isn't what it was 30 years ago, or even 10. Expensive, licensed computer programs (generally unavailable to Joe Shadetree) along with today's AI made auto diagnostics much easier.

Posted by Besoeker 2026-01-08 07:08|| 2026-01-08 07:08|| Front Page Top

5 Sure, the new cars and the drive trains now last over 100k++ miles and 7+ years compared to the 36k and maybe 3 to 5 years of the pre-80's

Have owned and repaired Nova SS's, 440 Super Bee's, Dodge Cornet 440 and other 1/2 bondo ☺ cars in and from the 70' & 80's.

Most from that day ang age knew how to run down the salvage yard, purchase remove a wreck car engine or transmission, and how to change them out in few hours.

Most of us knew how to tune them using strobe timing light and set dwell to what was needed.

We could grab a Chilton manual, read it and do most anything we had time and parts for, to service my cars up to the 80's.

Then the electronic age flush those skills & abilities.

Posted by NN2N1 2026-01-08 07:26|| 2026-01-08 07:26|| Front Page Top

6 /\ Chevrolet used to publish a shop manual each year. I had one for my '57. When publications stopped, Chilton's was the 'go-to.' Chilton's was an anathema to the purist, eventually however, it became the standard.

Posted by Besoeker 2026-01-08 07:58|| 2026-01-08 07:58|| Front Page Top

7 A few years could be cut in the process if we hung a few public educators who turned the secondary school system into a feeder system for academia. Bring back shop at 7th grade with a integration into apprenticeship programs at 9th grade.

Posted by Procopius2k 2026-01-08 08:20|| 2026-01-08 08:20|| Front Page Top

8 1. I don't think 120k is representative of what mechanics make generally.
2. The guys (yes, guys) who could do the job are getting paid more on the oil fields. If you want a specific skill set then you have to pay the market rate.
3. Employers generally deserve zero sympathy. They treat their employees like sh-t, pay them peanuts, lay them off at will and then complain there's no loyalty. F that.

Posted by Megabyses 2026-01-08 09:23|| 2026-01-08 09:23|| Front Page Top

9 A perfect storm.
Inside RobotLAB: How Texas company is helping businesses nationwide fill labor gaps with AI

Posted by Skidmark 2026-01-08 12:13|| 2026-01-08 12:13|| Front Page Top

10 What a crock of shit. There are no plus hundred thousand dollar jobs that marginalized IT workers and other underemployed heritage americans do not want.

All these jobs 'no one wants' have so many hoops to jump through and boxes to check. It's not that people do not want them... How do I know, because I am a marginalized IT worker.

Posted by mossomo 2026-01-08 12:37|| 2026-01-08 12:37|| Front Page Top

11 Marginalized IT workers over the age of 42 need not apply.

Posted by Besoeker 2026-01-08 13:08|| 2026-01-08 13:08|| Front Page Top

12 However, he was struggling to fill those positions as the US is suffering a shortage of workers skilled in manual labor.

The AWFLs absolutely forbid their children to go down that path. Look there to find the #1 reason for this shortage.

Posted by no mo uro 2026-01-08 13:15|| 2026-01-08 13:15|| Front Page Top

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