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I'm curious as to what "unskilled" labor really means. I have come to believe that it means whatever an employer wishes it to mean. Years ago, I worked as an aircraft fueler at the Fort Lauderdale International airport. Two weeks of classroom training was required and another two weeks of on the job training before you pumped your first gallon of jet fuel. Then there was fire safety training required by the Fire Marshall and individual airline procedure training. You had to know how to fuel aircraft without operational gauges and understand cockpit controls for transferring fuel between tanks. This was a good paying job that demanded what was considered "skilled" labor.Now, many fueling companies are taking a different approach. The pay is insulting and the expectations are low at best. The goal is quantity not quality. Aircraft fuelers are not considered skilled labor anymore and rightfully so because they are not. Most of the ranks are filled with Haitians, Jamaicans and Mexicans who can do little more than fill up your car but hey, it's cheap labor that Americans aren't interested in right?. Airport authorities complain about this as do the airlines but it's all about saving a buck.I have no issues with the immigrants that fill these jobs but I do take issue with the employers that create this type of environment and then blame us for not taking a minimum wage "unskilled" job that used to require a lot of skill. I felt a lot better about flying 20 years ago than I do now because I know how they are cutting corners.-Castle
I'm curious as to what "unskilled" labor really means. I have come to believe that it means whatever an employer wishes it to mean. Years ago, I worked as an aircraft fueler at the Fort Lauderdale International airport. Two weeks of classroom training was required and another two weeks of on the job training before you pumped your first gallon of jet fuel. Then there was fire safety training required by the Fire Marshall and individual airline procedure training. You had to know how to fuel aircraft without operational gauges and understand cockpit controls for transferring fuel between tanks. This was a good paying job that demanded what was considered "skilled" labor.
Now, many fueling companies are taking a different approach. The pay is insulting and the expectations are low at best. The goal is quantity not quality. Aircraft fuelers are not considered skilled labor anymore and rightfully so because they are not. Most of the ranks are filled with Haitians, Jamaicans and Mexicans who can do little more than fill up your car but hey, it's cheap labor that Americans aren't interested in right?. Airport authorities complain about this as do the airlines but it's all about saving a buck.
I have no issues with the immigrants that fill these jobs but I do take issue with the employers that create this type of environment and then blame us for not taking a minimum wage "unskilled" job that used to require a lot of skill. I felt a lot better about flying 20 years ago than I do now because I know how they are cutting corners.
-Castle
