The Joint Minorities Development Program (JMDP) was a joint enterprise of Organizing and Supportive Agency, Inc. (OSA) and Human Interest Regarding Employment/Minorities Action Coalition (HIRE/MAC) to train black construction workers and organize them into a self-supportive construction cooperative. JMDP evolved in three stages. The first phase…

A University of Idaho educator relates his successful use, in farm mechanics, of a non-degree instructor whose journeyman experience was as a farm tractor and implement mechanic. (EA)

Job opportunities are especially good for locksmiths who can install and service electronic security systems. (Editor)

A review of three recent publications leads to the conclusion that Britain should (1) adopt the German two-tier system of skilled workers and master workers, a status distinction that can be applied in blue- and white-collar occupations; and (2) train workers through apprenticeships. (SK)

Discusses the educational imperatives of current and projected skilled labor needs in Canada and how they should be met. (JOW)

The "other" flexible work force includes the unemployed and low-wage, part-time, temporary, and seasonal workers who are flexible but not by choice. The new labor market may be limited in terms of demand for high skills but may have great need for unskilled, disposable workers. (SK)

The Kuwaiti system of vocational-technical education has not lived up to expectations because of low student aptitude, lack of managerial and academic facilities, and weak industrial linkages. The Gulf War exacerbated skilled labor shortages, leaving the country dependent on expatriates. (SK)

If the labor movement is to survive technological change and lean-work reorganization schemes, it must address the issues of skilled work, particularly training; how management organizes work; and the relationship between skilled workers and the rest of the labor movement. (Author)

This article relates the experiences of Jeff Fischer, an instructor in the Computer Integrated Machining department at South Central College (SCC) in North Mankato, Minnesota. Facing dwindling student enrollment and possible departmental budget costs, Fischer was able to turn his passion for custom-built cycles and the intricate machining that…

Evidence shows that there is an increasing number of knowledge and management occupations in a broad range of sectors, requiring greater numbers of well-educated and skilled workers. Despite this compelling need for skilled workers, the reports note that immigrants often do not fare well in the Canadian economy. One of the main barriers faced by…

The Irish economy has grown at an unprecedented rate over the last decade and the demand for skilled workers has increased dramatically. The Irish Standards-Based Apprenticeship (SBA) system has been one of the cornerstones of intermediate skills development with the capacity to produce high-quality craft workers and in sufficient numbers to meet…

Today's secondary, postsecondary and career and technical education students stand poised at the center of industry trends that will benefit them enormously. The country is embarking on a construction boom. As baby boomers approach retirement age, a significant portion of the existing construction workforce will be leaving, thus, demand for…

In this article, we detail how to produce two inexpensive micromanipulators that offer high precision (approximately 25 micrometers) along a single axis of movement. The more expensive of the designs provides improved versatility along multiple axes. Both manipulators offer substantial savings over commercially available micromanipulators with…