**Ford CEO Jim Farley Warns of Dire Shortage of Skilled Tradespeople Amid 5,000 Unfilled Mechanic Jobs Paying $120K**
Jim Farley, the CEO of Ford, recently revealed a troubling issue facing the U.S. labor market: the company is unable to fill 5,000 mechanic positions despite offering a salary of $120,000 per year. This shortage of skilled tradespeople highlights a larger problem that has been discussed by TV personality Mike Rowe and others for years — the country simply isn’t producing enough young people trained in essential hands-on skills.
Farley shared his concerns during an episode of the “Office Hours: Business Edition” podcast. He emphasized, “We are in trouble in our country. We are not talking about this enough.” According to Farley, there are over a million job openings in critical sectors such as emergency services, trucking, manufacturing, plumbing, electrical work, and other trades.
The CEO explained that it takes approximately five years of training to acquire the skills necessary to, for example, pull a diesel engine out of a Ford Super Duty truck. However, the U.S. currently lacks enough trade schools to train this next generation of workers. “We are not investing in educating a next generation of people like my grandfather who had nothing, who built a middle class life and a future for his family,” Farley lamented.
This concern echoes the sentiments expressed by Mike Rowe earlier this year. Rowe pointed out the stark contrast between the growing student debt and the number of available jobs that do not require a four-year college degree. “We have $7 trillion in student debt on the books and 7.6 million open jobs right now — most of which don’t require a 4-year degree,” Rowe said in a widely shared clip on social media platform X.
Furthermore, Rowe noted that 6.8 million able-bodied men are currently out of the workforce and not actively seeking employment. He highlighted the removal of shop classes from high schools as a significant factor: “We took shop class out of high school; we robbed kids of the opportunity to see what that kind of work even looks like.”
He added, “Meanwhile, we told a whole generation of kids they were screwed if they didn’t get a 4-year degree. We are going to have a serious problem in this country if we don’t fix this quickly.”
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**About the Author**
Mike LaChance has been covering higher education and politics since 2012 for Legal Insurrection. Since 2008, he has contributed to various outlets including Gateway Pundit, Daily Caller, Breitbart, the Center for Security Policy, Washington Free Beacon, Ricochet, American Lookout, Townhall, and Twitchy.
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**Related Topics:** Business/Economy, Culture/Society, News/Current Events
**Keywords:** Ford, industry, jobs, labor, mechanics, technicians, unemployment
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**Reader Comments Snapshot:**
– Some readers suggest that alternative social issues and distractions hinder skill development.
– Others propose policy changes, such as reducing welfare, to motivate people to enter trades.
– There are opinions on Ford’s management and workplace environment possibly contributing to the hiring challenge.
– Several comments emphasize the importance of teaching practical skills and using military training resources.
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*Disclaimer: Opinions expressed by readers do not necessarily reflect those of this publication.*
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