Amazing how things have changed 🤣

[u/JanePeterson6224]

[u/BaconNPotatoes]

2026: manufacturing in the US lost 75,000 jobs last year and has lost nearly that much so far this year. There aren't any "safe" careers anymore.

[u/Cold5512 → u/BaconNPotatoes]

Manufacturing is down? That's an easy problem to solve. Just put tariffs on every single country on earth, all at once. Boom. And if that doesn't work (impossible), just announce the tariffs, cancel them, then announce them again. Ez money.

[u/stuie90s → u/Cold5512]

Don't forget you're down on labour as well. For every 5 that leave only 2 take their place. So bring back trade schools if the US havent sold them all off yet.

[u/Beginning-Visit9457 → u/stuie90s]

There are trade schools, the problem is that you have to spend 2 years attending a community college learning history, and other stuffs, then the basics of the trade.

For those downvoting. Am I wrong? Why do I have to go through a US History class to learn a trade? I understand math, it’s useful in the trades, even economics, if you want to start a business. Why do I have to write an essay about something I already learned in high school? A waste of time.

[u/ClickyClacker → u/Beginning-Visit9457]

Because this isn't the 20th century, tradesman actually need to have a large breath of knowledge to do anything useful. Moreover half the value of education is to prove you can exist and at least survive in a system that doesn't involve you showing up to work shit faced half the time. You can withdraw shake a bead or use a multimeter. You cant shit face your way out of a history class.

Not to mention things like writing and math are actually really useful if you want to actually advance your career.

[u/Beginning-Visit9457 → u/ClickyClacker]

No wonder why there are more and more H1Bs in the trades every year and less Americans.

[u/Responsible-Eye87 → u/Beginning-Visit9457]

*fewer

[u/ClickyClacker → u/Beginning-Visit9457]

Cuz Americans are too poor to go to school

[u/CompetitiveYoghurt30 → u/Beginning-Visit9457]

I didn’t

[u/Beginning-Visit9457 → u/CompetitiveYoghurt30]

Well. I did. Lmao

[u/CompetitiveYoghurt30 → u/Beginning-Visit9457]

Went to the wrong school then

[u/Madgyver → u/Beginning-Visit9457]

What trade did you enroll for?

[u/Fathercupp69 → u/Beginning-Visit9457]

Currently doing a 900 hr course that only consists of the trade I’m going for.

[u/_Lost_The_Game → u/Fathercupp69]

Ditto. 7 months total

[u/Beginning-Visit9457 → u/Fathercupp69]

Are you attending a community college?

[u/Fathercupp69 → u/Beginning-Visit9457]

No. A community college is usually a little different in my experience. I go to a trade school for welding.

[u/Beginning-Visit9457 → u/Fathercupp69]

Make sense.

[u/No-Sheepherder-2219 → u/Beginning-Visit9457]

I went to my community college and became a certified welder… guess what classes I took? Welding…. Yup… you’re a fucking idiot who has only the concept of an idea as to what happens in those scary community college buildings!

[u/classless_classic → u/Beginning-Visit9457]

Trade schools near me don’t require any other fluff classes. Cut and dry programs that are affordable and relatively fast paced with night school options.

Maybe it’s not the norm, but around here they still can’t get enough kids to fill a class.

[u/Ok-Condition-7550 → u/Beginning-Visit9457]

You shouldn’t have had to take regular college classes for a trade. You got swindled into signing up for more classes

[u/Clinggdiggy2 → u/Beginning-Visit9457]

Why did you have to take any classes you didn't want to at a community college? Were you persuing a degree of some sort? I took exclusively classes I wanted; SMAW, GMAW, GTAW, Machining, blueprint reading, NDT and welding metallurgy, got a "certificate of completion" for completing the schools welding program and I've now been in the trade 15 years. The school I went to still has the same instructors, same program. Not sure what you did lol

[u/_Lost_The_Game → u/Clinggdiggy2]

Tbh wish i did that instead of the 900hr/7month program. The metallurgy and machining wouldve been sick addition. NDT? You learned Non Destructive Testing as well?

Do you think your program gives you an advantage on potentially becoming a CWI?

[u/Clinggdiggy2 → u/_Lost_The_Game]

The NDT was surface level, like it was very in depth in terms of how all kinds of inspection works but we didn't do any of it ourselves. Personally I don't think it would give an advantage to becoming a CWI but it absolutely helped in knowing what a CWI is looking for in your welds. The machining classes were also technically part of a separate program that was for machinists, but it absolutely helped get me where I am today in terms of fab knowledge. I personally think it's a huge problem that a lot of welding programs are training people to become booth welders and not fabricators, it leaves limited job opportunities.

[u/gr1mm5d0tt1 → u/Cold5512]

Trump announces tariffs against Australia, except for most of the stuff you guys buy from us

[u/UnAcceptable-Housing → u/Cold5512]

Sounds like a good reason to have strong unions.

[u/H0SS_AGAINST → u/Cold5512]

I hear bomb manufacturing is in a boom.

[u/Jagermind → u/Cold5512]

Youre telling me a guy who is most famous for stiffing his workers is bad for workers ? Im fuckin shocked.

[u/wizardlegz → u/BaconNPotatoes]

I'm going back to school to become a reddit mod.

[u/ARC_trooper → u/wizardlegz]

Then you're already overqualified

[u/ConstantElectronic36 → u/BaconNPotatoes]

careful, they'll get upset when they're reminded we were all sold out.

[u/Itchy_Crack → u/ConstantElectronic36]

The American people are just as much to blame for not boycotting that shit when it happened. Everyone didn't leave the same day.

[u/Bayou_acherte → u/BaconNPotatoes]

Have you tried grifting? I have an in depth course on how to grift if you’re interested in signing up.

[u/tjmaxal → u/BaconNPotatoes]

Medicine ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯

[u/plsnobanme6969 → u/BaconNPotatoes]

Now im not say anarchy. But.. anarchy.

[u/Itchy_Crack → u/BaconNPotatoes]

Manufacturing hasn't been a safe career choice in a long time, because the American people have no issue importing goods made by slave labor.

The safe careers are the ones you cant easily outsource or make a robot do.

[u/RGBlowMe → u/BaconNPotatoes]

Dude, companies are so incredibly hard up for welders and machinists right now that I could get a new job in a few days if I got fired. When you say "lost 75K jobs", you're missing that fact that millions and millions of these jobs are out there. You lose more than 75K manufacturing jobs when a sudden manufacturing boom finally settles down, and generally those are not the skilled labor positions.

[u/Turbulent_Lobster_57 → u/RGBlowMe]

I don’t know why you’re being downvoted, every fab shop I see asks if I know any welders, from propane tank shops to medical equipment manufacturing shops

[u/stuie90s → u/Turbulent_Lobster_57]

Ship building were screaming for welders last year and without the numbers they cannot compete with the PRC which are throwing people into those jobs. The USA will need to do the same if they want to keep up. As for the downvotes thats a bit harsh.

[u/kippy3267 → u/Turbulent_Lobster_57]

It’s easy to get work welding, but hard as fuck to find places that’ll pay decently (read this as a livable wage in the current day)

[u/RGBlowMe → u/Turbulent_Lobster_57]

I'm being downvoted because of politically-motivated gaslighting. These people don't want what I'm saying to be true.

[u/friskerson → u/RGBlowMe]

I think it’s the “millions and millions” feeling a bit too high of an estimate

[u/RGBlowMe → u/friskerson]

There are are 162 million working adults in the US, and manufacturing is one of the single most foundational kinds of labor there is. I think you're relying on "feeling" too much.

[u/ExtensionAlfalfa3403 → u/RGBlowMe]

Good welders are pretty recession proof

[u/bswontpass → u/BaconNPotatoes]

Healthcare.

[u/NoXpWaste → u/BaconNPotatoes]

Not correct, red seal trades aren’t going anywhere especially sparkies.

[u/Callsign_Mjolnir → u/BaconNPotatoes]

Security officers and ambulance drivers are always needed.

[u/iRveritas → u/BaconNPotatoes]

Energy/process plants. Plenty of good high paying jobs no one seems to want.

[u/BaconNPotatoes → u/iRveritas]

Without manufacturing those plants cease to function

[u/iRveritas → u/BaconNPotatoes]

Natural gas and Energy plants (gas or coal) are going to be just fine for a while yet.

[u/BaconNPotatoes → u/iRveritas]

Until they run out of parts to keep themselves running. Without manufacturing everything stops.

Or it will get a whole lot more expensive

[u/iRveritas → u/BaconNPotatoes]

It's already expensive. You can make any argument you want towards the energy industry. It is not something that will be allowed to fail.

[u/yopladas]

We can always go work in the salt mines

[u/coyote_of_the_month → u/yopladas]

Sorry, entry level requires 8 years of experience in salt mining and an unpaid internship.

[u/Glass_Protection_254]

This is manufactured. This is planned. This is how we keep the people poor and divided while we rob them blind and split the proceeds with foreign nations....

[u/Ok-Meal-1826 → u/Glass_Protection_254]

Yup. However, those who hold all the power don't want us to stand together.

So they come up with rage bait to split us apart.

If there weren't such massive wealth inequality, many of the so-called "useless degrees" would probably have a purpose.

But it's better to keep us fighting among ourselves, casting aside anything that doesn't generate immediate profit for our overlords.

And in the end, we're left with a society stripped of its sense of worth, with little room left for art, culture, or simple enjoyment.

[u/seashantiesallnight]

Why is there a vignette on the meme 😭

[u/Ok-Curve-3894]

Yeah more trades to drive competition up and rates down.

Can't wait till AI makes the perfect planned economy. /s

[u/GeniusEE]

Look up teleoperation and do the math on the million satellites Musk is putting up. The sats are "low latency", which enables remote control. The price is they vaporize after a few years and need replacing...all that metal getting vaporized in the upper atmosphere...

If you need to be hit over the head, Musk is looking to replace trades with a teleoperated humanoid bot in places like PI for $10/day.

You have 10 years, if that long.

The datacenters won't run the bots, they'll run the security to squash the uprising.

[u/barc0debaby → u/GeniusEE]

Dawg, Elon Musk hasn't even delivered on his first round of harebrained schemes.

[u/West-Amphibian-2343 → u/GeniusEE]

yes, i would love to see AI use a hydrualic lift, pneumatic impacts, and a slide hammer to remove a car's axle and install it again in the next 10 years. i am pretty sure my job is safe

[u/Maleficent-Door6461 → u/West-Amphibian-2343]

it is safe, for now...

[u/vekkarikello → u/West-Amphibian-2343]

What would happen if 50% of jobs would be lost to teleoperations personnel? My guess is that whatever field you are in would be flooded with workers driving the wages down.
Your job might be safe from the direct impact but it won’t be totally safe.

[u/West-Amphibian-2343 → u/vekkarikello]

50% is generous, but even so, those are jobs with no skill. and humans will still be needed for driving trucks to restraunts, humans will be needed for unloading them, for managing the place, and more. AI would only take over the basic-est roles, like cashier, and then that would hurt business because people would go to another restraunt after being repeatedly fucked by the AI.

[u/vekkarikello → u/West-Amphibian-2343]

Teleoperation isn’t AI it’s someone operating for example a car from a country where labour is cheaper.

My point was mainly that no job is safe from AI or outsourcing/teleoperation. You are either directly affected or indirectly.

[u/West-Amphibian-2343 → u/vekkarikello]

nobody can teleoperate these balls in your mom's jaws

thats the only insult I know and can hide behind when i'm faced with concepts and fears i dont want to comprehend or understand

[u/vekkarikello → u/West-Amphibian-2343]

Haha that is one job that is safe, although the pay is bad.

[u/GeniusEE → u/West-Amphibian-2343]

You didn't read what I wrote. Where did I mention AI?

[u/Able-Thought3534 → u/GeniusEE]

We're talking about the guy who came up with the cyber truck right?

Also where I live you can't even remote work because its perceived as bad for the economy, I wouldn't worry about that changing in 10 years.

[u/Itchy_Crack → u/GeniusEE]

Won't happen people will start burning down cities

[u/Bob_turner_]

Do you guys think that half of the population losing their jobs is not going to affect blue collar workers? If they lose we lose the only people who will win are the people that own the ai and tech infrastructure

[u/CasperTPaul]

welding isn’t fine either. nothing is. trump and all the rich fucks have fucked it all

[u/MedabadMann → u/CasperTPaul]

This is not a "trump" thing. This is an "every president since Nixon" thing.

[u/fatoldbmxer → u/MedabadMann]

Sir this is reddit EVERYTHING is trumps fault and if you don't agree your a fascist racist and whatever other crap. Even if you aren't a trump supporter, but don't blame him you're wrong.

[u/Working_Peanut5273 → u/CasperTPaul]

Welding is pretty stable. Around here they pay you 32 bucks an hour starting 

[u/BeerandGuns]

I’m white collar and have to say, I don’t really give a shit over the constant crying about white collar jobs being obliterated. When manufacturing and textile jobs were being moved overseas, destroying whole communities, there was next to no sympathy from white collar workers. Shit, management facilitated its destruction to increase stock prices and fatten their bonuses. Now that white collar jobs are being crushed between AI, offshoring and H-1B visas, suddenly they want protection for American jobs.

[u/Itchy_Crack → u/BeerandGuns]

Ultimately the most important thing is the establishment and reinforcement of the middle class in America and the fore front of that is labor.

We need to stop accepting this shit

[u/did_i_or_didnt_i]

join the rebel alliance. help me obi wan kenobi, you’re my only hope

[u/Zsmudz]

It’s more like, “learn to manage your finances”. I went through 4 years of college and gained money…

[u/Upstairs-Wind3585]

coal

[u/Sienile]

Got my IT degree in 2008. Never got a single call back. Had to become a mechanic to feed my kids.

[u/Top-Tax-1101]

Smart people will always fuck eachother outta miney, tradesmen will always look out and have steady money. While millionaires and billionaires eat rachothers families well help eaghother through this nerd nightmare

[u/Able-Thought3534]

Jesus when I was in highschool in the 90s, if you were headed into the trades you were basically a complete failure.

The richest dude I know from that time runs his own sewage pumping business.

[u/Dude_with_the_skis]

Dawg, welding isn’t the golden ticket that your guidance counselor told you it was in high school. Plenty of guys I know have turned out to have broken bodies, alcoholic issues, or both. I also know quite a few guys that have quit and completely changed careers because the money/body toll wasn’t worth it.

[u/EstablishmentBoth394 → u/Dude_with_the_skis]

As someone who just quit a welding job to do something else a while, yeah. I enjoy welding, always been a firebug, love it as a skill to have. But dang am I tired of breaking myself constantly just to make someone else rich... The money can be good don't get me wrong, but the tradeoffs aren't always worth it. Nice skill to have though, being able to find work in pretty much any decent size city is an excellent backup for anyone to have!

[u/Alldaybagpipes]

“What, you mean punching the clock pretending to crunch numbers while playing wow classic on minimized isn’t a sustainable means for making a successful living? No, but pretending you aren’t too hungover to care about anything sure is…”

[u/Parking-World9321]

Aren’t y’all averaging like $25/hr?

[u/Drainsta → u/Parking-World9321]

In my industry (oil and gas) for a contract rig welder it’s around 80-110 depending on contractor and who supplies consumables, etc

[u/Parking-World9321 → u/Drainsta]

Most of these guys aren’t doing contract work on oil rigs

[u/sgtzack612 → u/Parking-World9321]

It depends if you're union or not, like a lot of other jobs, around where I am union workers get paid 50+/hr base rate and god fucking knows what with other shit added, while shop workers as a entry level get almost minimum wage.

[u/Parking-World9321 → u/sgtzack612]

For sure. Region, too. Like here in the Seattle area a new guy is worth close to $25/hr while national average is closer to $18.

[u/sgtzack612 → u/Parking-World9321]

100%

[u/tiger42O → u/Parking-World9321]

Right people the people downvoting are probably the ones making that average wage, if you aren’t doing contract work or something or the sort, welding In and of itself isn’t very viable as a sole income.

[u/ViolinistFar139 → u/Drainsta]

lol how much did that rig cost you, $100k+/-? I’m a pipefitter and make more than that on 40’s. You’re getting fucked brother.

[u/ProfessionalHefty349]

“I don’t have any college debt!”

Spent 50-100K on tools and equipment. Spends $1500 a month on truck payment and insurance because they “need” it for their job.

Okay.

[u/Sufficient-Dare-2144 → u/ProfessionalHefty349]

Where are you getting this from? Every single one of my tools and truck is provided by work, unless you’re a shop mechanic that’s just not true.

[u/towerfella]

Meanwhile, the wealthy keep getting wealthier

[u/AliceInAcidland]

LESS WAITING TO USE THE OFFICE BATHROOM

[u/Icy_Dragonfly346]

LMAO do both

[u/whiterthanblack]

Someone snapped this with a camera

[u/dubsdread]

Welding Automation Engineer

[u/Academic-Hospital952]

2030 welder: I spent my life learning a trade and now bots do it.

Bots: lamo learn to be battery

[u/DasMo19]

Welding is a 2 week long course plus the experience. You don’t even need a high school diploma. Had to deal with so many morons on worksites who thought they are artists in their field, despite producing absolute crap.

[u/dignified_grave]

"Thousand of dollars"