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If there's a tech skills shortage, why so many computer graduates unemployed?

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Re: If there's a tech skills shortage, why so many computer graduates unemployed?

#51

Post by ryandrake »

ggggtez wrote: post #45
astanway wrote: post #8

Ah, the old "shortage" "issue". More likely, there is no shortage - just a shortage of engineers willing to be paid the low wages most likely on offer at these companies

I've given the advice to many associates to hold out for a job they actually want in their field. Waiting for a higher paying and more satisfying job is worth being unemployed temporarily, especially in tech, where you can be assured the job you want does exist.

> especially in tech, where you can be assured the job you want does exist

That's a very bold claim. I (and I'm sure many other people) have been looking for decades.

Re: If there's a tech skills shortage, why so many computer graduates unemployed?

#53

Post by wolfgke »

rm_-rf_slash wrote: post #20
sotojuan wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In my experience it's not so much a shortage of people willing to work for peanuts but rather a shortage of "experts" whom the company doesn't have to train at all and will magically sit down in their desk and print money. Every industry has their own version of the perfect employee but in tech, companies actually expect to get them.

The internet has made that a pernicious aspect of our culture that seems impossible to shake. "Whatever you need, whatever you want, the perfect answer is out there, somewhere, and you can communicate instantly. You just need to know where to look. All the mountains are flat."

> "Whatever you need, whatever you want, the perfect answer is out there, somewhere, and you can communicate instantly. You just need to know where to look. All the mountains are flat."

This might even be true - but it does not say for which cost/salary it is available. :-)

Re: If there's a tech skills shortage, why so many computer graduates unemployed?

#54

Post by wolfgke »

noamsml wrote: post #11
astanway wrote: post #8

Ah, the old "shortage" "issue". More likely, there is no shortage - just a shortage of engineers willing to be paid the low wages most likely on offer at these companies

Low wages? Silicon valley engineers tend to be fairly highly paid...

> Low wages? Silicon valley engineers tend to be fairly highly paid...

But as far as I heard the accommodation costs are also strongly increasing - from which I would conclude that the actual wages do not increase so much.

Re: If there's a tech skills shortage, why so many computer graduates unemployed?

#55

Post by [deleted] »

sharemywin wrote: post #36
Mikeb85 wrote: post #16

Well my education is in economics and, in general, the way to solve a 'shortage' in labour is to raise wages. Of course, what they're really talking about is a shortage in engineers willing to do the job at the price they've specified, so they lobby the government to open up immigration to workers from abroad willing to work for less, while at the same time trying to push more and more kids into CS, so that the marke…

The problem is the shortage is with companies wanting exactly "XYZ" experience in the last 2-3 years.

[deleted]

Re: If there's a tech skills shortage, why so many computer graduates unemployed?

#56

Post by petra »

sotojuan wrote: post #12
astanway wrote: post #8

Ah, the old "shortage" "issue". More likely, there is no shortage - just a shortage of engineers willing to be paid the low wages most likely on offer at these companies

In my experience it's not so much a shortage of people willing to work for peanuts but rather a shortage of "experts" whom the company doesn't have to train at all and will magically sit down in their desk and print money. Every industry has their own version of the perfect employee but in tech, companies actually expect to get them.

>> a shortage of "experts"

In such situation, wouldn't using standard tools would benefit companies, but also benefit employees. And from the tecchnical point of view, this seems achievable , because many companies do similar stuff.

But instead we get the currrent situation(one example is javascript frameworks). Why ?

Re: If there's a tech skills shortage, why so many computer graduates unemployed?

#57

Post by ryandrake »

noamsml wrote: post #11
astanway wrote: post #8

Ah, the old "shortage" "issue". More likely, there is no shortage - just a shortage of engineers willing to be paid the low wages most likely on offer at these companies

Low wages? Silicon valley engineers tend to be fairly highly paid...

SOME Silicon Valley engineers are fairly highly paid. Especially so if you only read HN, where there's always someone who's brother's girlfriend's roommate knows someone at Google who makes $250K, therefore this must be an average salary.

Re: If there's a tech skills shortage, why so many computer graduates unemployed?

#58

Post by wolfgke »

petra wrote: post #56
sotojuan wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In my experience it's not so much a shortage of people willing to work for peanuts but rather a shortage of "experts" whom the company doesn't have to train at all and will magically sit down in their desk and print money. Every industry has their own version of the perfect employee but in tech, companies actually expect to get them.

>> a shortage of "experts" In such situation, wouldn't using standard tools would benefit companies, but also benefit employees. And from the tecchnical point of view, this seems achievable , because many companies do similar stuff. But instead we get the currrent situation(one example is javascript frameworks). Why ?

> But instead we get the currrent situation(one example is javascript frameworks). Why ?

Each time you use or refuse to use a particular Javascript framework you make a democratic vote on the situation. So the existence of lots of JS framework is a result of a democratic election.

Re: If there's a tech skills shortage, why so many computer graduates unemployed?

#59

Post by ryandrake »

jimmydddd wrote: post #49
Mikeb85 wrote: post #16

Well my education is in economics and, in general, the way to solve a 'shortage' in labour is to raise wages. Of course, what they're really talking about is a shortage in engineers willing to do the job at the price they've specified, so they lobby the government to open up immigration to workers from abroad willing to work for less, while at the same time trying to push more and more kids into CS, so that the marke…

I agree with this point. A Rutgers University professor did some research on this issue. He is quoted as saying something like "just because I can't find a 60 inch flat screen TV for $100 doesn't mean there's a shortage of flat screen TVs."

Yea, I use the "I want a $10K Ferarri = shortage of Ferarris" example but it's the same thing. The word shortage is meaningless without stating the asking price.

Re: If there's a tech skills shortage, why so many computer graduates unemployed?

#60

Post by lloyd-christmas »

sotojuan wrote: post #27
majormajor wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> from my US perspective, there are just a lot of CS graduates with little to no professional coding experience either out of laziness or lack of knowledge (yes, there are people who expect a job with just a degree) This sounds a lot like "sorry, we won't take you until you've been trained, but we're not willing to train you."

Yes, that's the problem and it doesn't seem like it'll be fixed any time soon.

From a hiring side, the current industry standard of job-hopping within two years has a significant negative affect on junior hires. The ROI on training someone really isn't there if the their employment expectation boils down to dine-and-dash.
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