4 ms·

Guestworkers in the high-skill U.S. labor market (2013)

12 points by frostmatthew 12y ago

frostmatthew 12y ago
Of particular relevance for those suggesting a talent shortage: "In computer and information science and in engineering, U.S. colleges graduate 50 percent more students than are hired into those fields each year; of the computer science graduates not entering the IT workforce, 32 percent say it is because IT jobs are unavailable, and 53 percent say they found better job opportunities outside of IT occupations."
- waterlesscloud 12y ago
  Also, "Wages have remained flat, with real wages hovering around their late 1990s levels."
- pen2l 12y ago
  Until I see Apple, Facebook, $next_young_hot_startup coming to the career fair at our local midwest college looking for candidates, I will choose to believe founders and VCs are flat-out lying just so they can rake in the money with cheap labor. I'm actually serious. Some of the fellows I got to know years ago at my school (that pretty much no-one has heard of) were some of the smartest folks I ever met. But no Apple and no Facebook ever came to visit that school or post job ads in our internal jobs listing pages. I saw _zero_ effort companies trying to get these students, none, zilch. Absolutely nada. I find the whole thing shameless really.
  - acgourley 12y ago
    Did those smart people you knew have trouble finding jobs?
    - pen2l 12y ago
      Yes. One of the smarter guys I knew now works as a salesman at a John Deere dealership (that his dad owned). He was the guy I used to ask for help when I had trouble with my data structures assignments. I now make probably 3 or 4 times more than him, because I knew how to play the interview game and because I was willing to move away (this guy was a religious guy who wanted to not go too far from his family).
      - alooPotato 12y ago
        Would you consider this person part of the "eligible IT workforce" if he was unwilling to move where the jobs were? Would you say the same of a finance person who wasn't willing to move to NY or SF?
        pen2l 12y ago
        NY and SF are highly unique. For cultural, personal, and financial reasons a lot of people don't want to move there. Now, just because of this reality... VCs are entitled to changing this nation's policy on immigration? Why not simply establish an office in Chicago, or Ann Arbor, or Austin, or Minneapolis?
      - deleted 12y ago
        [deleted]
  - marcell 12y ago
    I don't know about Apple or Facebook, but at Google, on-campus recruiting is limited by employees. Employees can volunteer to go to a career fair at a university, which is typically their alma mater. If no one volunteers to go to a particular midwest (or any) college, then Google won't have a presence there.
    - waterlesscloud 12y ago
      If they were serious about being hindered by a lack of talent, they'd put some effort into finding it where ever it may be. They wouldn't depend on volunteers in the company, they'd assign people to it.
  - lingua_franca 12y ago
    there are no doubt a lot more smart guys in schools like Caltech and Stanford, of coz companies will go there to recruit more talents at once. you go out to find jobs, not the other way around unless you are well established. not to mention ur fellows are not willing to move; what do you want Apple/Facebook to do, set up an office near your college??
    - pen2l 12y ago
      Yes, it's more reasonable for a company to set up office near where talent is, rather than changing national policy to get talent from abroad. Who the hell are they to request this kind of national policy change? They're not kings and queens, either they should pay competitively if they really want workers in their desired locality or shut up.
IndianAstronaut 12y ago
Keep in mind the EPI is a biased source like the Heritage foundation or Cato Institute.

12 points by frostmatthew 12y ago

Of particular relevance for those suggesting a talent shortage: "In computer and information science and in engineering, U.S. colleges graduate 50 percent more students than are hired into those fields each year; of the computer science graduates not entering the IT workforce, 32 percent say it is because IT jobs are unavailable, and 53 percent say they found better job opportunities outside of IT occupations."

waterlesscloud 12y ago
Also, "Wages have remained flat, with real wages hovering around their late 1990s levels."
pen2l 12y ago
Until I see Apple, Facebook, $next_young_hot_startup coming to the career fair at our local midwest college looking for candidates, I will choose to believe founders and VCs are flat-out lying just so they can rake in the money with cheap labor. I'm actually serious. Some of the fellows I got to know years ago at my school (that pretty much no-one has heard of) were some of the smartest folks I ever met. But no Apple and no Facebook ever came to visit that school or post job ads in our internal jobs listing pages. I saw _zero_ effort companies trying to get these students, none, zilch. Absolutely nada. I find the whole thing shameless really.
- acgourley 12y ago
  Did those smart people you knew have trouble finding jobs?
  - pen2l 12y ago
    Yes. One of the smarter guys I knew now works as a salesman at a John Deere dealership (that his dad owned). He was the guy I used to ask for help when I had trouble with my data structures assignments. I now make probably 3 or 4 times more than him, because I knew how to play the interview game and because I was willing to move away (this guy was a religious guy who wanted to not go too far from his family).
    - alooPotato 12y ago
      Would you consider this person part of the "eligible IT workforce" if he was unwilling to move where the jobs were? Would you say the same of a finance person who wasn't willing to move to NY or SF?
      - pen2l 12y ago
        NY and SF are highly unique. For cultural, personal, and financial reasons a lot of people don't want to move there. Now, just because of this reality... VCs are entitled to changing this nation's policy on immigration? Why not simply establish an office in Chicago, or Ann Arbor, or Austin, or Minneapolis?
    - deleted 12y ago
      [deleted]
- marcell 12y ago
  I don't know about Apple or Facebook, but at Google, on-campus recruiting is limited by employees. Employees can volunteer to go to a career fair at a university, which is typically their alma mater. If no one volunteers to go to a particular midwest (or any) college, then Google won't have a presence there.
  - waterlesscloud 12y ago
    If they were serious about being hindered by a lack of talent, they'd put some effort into finding it where ever it may be. They wouldn't depend on volunteers in the company, they'd assign people to it.
- lingua_franca 12y ago
  there are no doubt a lot more smart guys in schools like Caltech and Stanford, of coz companies will go there to recruit more talents at once. you go out to find jobs, not the other way around unless you are well established. not to mention ur fellows are not willing to move; what do you want Apple/Facebook to do, set up an office near your college??
  - pen2l 12y ago
    Yes, it's more reasonable for a company to set up office near where talent is, rather than changing national policy to get talent from abroad. Who the hell are they to request this kind of national policy change? They're not kings and queens, either they should pay competitively if they really want workers in their desired locality or shut up.

IndianAstronaut 12y ago

Keep in mind the EPI is a biased source like the Heritage foundation or Cato Institute.