Ken Rusk

We are in the age of automation, and blue-collar workers need to consider upskilling to be successful. In a rapidly changing market, blue-collar workers need to get more training to preserve their jobs and earn a higher salary.

We live in an increasingly technological society where robots and artificial intelligence will soon work alongside humans in the blue-collar workplace. While some fear technology displacing blue-collar workers, I do not. Reading an article recently, I agreed with one of the experts, technology won't eliminate blue-collar jobs anytime soon, it will only shift the scope of the type of work done by blue-collar workers. Read More »

The blue-collar industry sustained an allure that enticed the typical working man of the 1950s, 60s, and 70s. And why not? A job of this caliber afforded a person the opportunity to achieve the “American Dream” -- the white picket fence, the 2.5 children, and nice house. A college education was not required to be comfortable in the middle-class. 

In the ensuing years the quality of blue collar work didn’t change, but our attitude towards it did. We began to hear over and over that college was necessary to experience life success. As a result, the perception of blue-collar work declined and even as the work continued to offer solid careers. Now there aren’t enough interested candidates to fill all the excellent high-paying jobs available - but the lack of employees means those who are interested now can make a lot of money and maybe even become a millionaire. Read More »

We all know the image of the dystopian future of the American workforce: robots, in droves, take all the jobs that hardworking, real people have always had, the poverty level skyrockets, and the human race as we know it, devolves. Sometimes, the robots even turn on humans and try to kill them all. While frightening and sellable, studies suggest it isn’t realistic.

What is real, though, is the stigmatization of American blue-collar jobs and that is much more scary for the modern-day workforce than the aforementioned thriller movie plot. Read More »

These times, they are a’changin’. The trend of the last 20-30 years has shifted. Who would have thought that it would be the college-educated populace that would struggle to find work in this day and age? But it’s true - for every job in education and health services, there are, on average, 2.26 unemployed people with the proper credentials to fill it. For a job in finance, 1.78 individuals are waiting in line. And for “professional service” positions, 1.9 potential employees vie for each one.

But the trend is not the same for those in the blue-collar sector of the workforce. For a job in construction, there are three-quarters of a person to fill it. Which means there is an overabundance of available positions in the industry. Moreover, the individuals who fill these jobs are more likely to “experience rapid wage growth, and be overall satisfied,” according to the Conference Board. Read More »

A booming economy, changing norms, and new openings vacated by retiring men are changing the face of blue-collar work. Today, women are filling roles that were historically male-dominated. Though the percentage of women in the overall workforce hasn’t changed much, the number of women working in blue-collar jobs male-dominated careers such as police officers and in construction, transportation, and warehouse positions has increased and is poised to continue expanding.

What’s behind this shift? According to the Wall Street Journal, more women are opting into blue-collar roles because of their desire for better pay, the recognition that other women are filling these positions too, and due to the emergence of blue-collar job-training programs even as the cost of four-year degrees skyrockets. Read More »

By now, you’ve heard about the vast number of job openings in the trades. With Baby Boomers retiring and a never-ending need for skilled workers, the trades have never been more inviting for those looking to grow their career or run their own business.

Some trades are truly skyrocketing. These five fast growing trade jobs need people to step into the workforce or change careers just to keep up with demand. These aren't just the fastest-growing trade jobs, though. They are also some of the fastest-growing careers overall and some of the best careers for 2020 and beyond because they are high-paying, available, and only require high school or trade school instead of a bachelor's degree. Read More »

Learning to Hire For Skills, Not Degrees

The tech boom has certainly changed our lives and our workplaces. It has also lead to thousands of articles in the newspapers and stories on TV about the rise of tech jobs that require four-year degrees. What hasn’t been covered nearly as well as the creation of millions of another kind of job: new collar jobs. As much as these shifts have created a need for bachelors and PhDs, they’ve actually created an even bigger need: non-college grads who are known as new collar workers.

What is a new collar worker? Read More »