Jobs that won't be outsourced

The Santa Maria area has one resource that creates jobs and can't be shipped overseas - acres of farm land.

At the recent County Fair at the Fairpark, the booths created by FFA and 4-H groups were inspiring in the enthusiasm these young people have for the future of agriculture. The fields of crop science and other agriculture related careers are a promising aspect of that industry.

However, field workers will always be needed until machines can do the job. We need to educate and train people for jobs that will stay here, and will pay enough to live here.

What is happening to U.S. jobs? Here is an example. You answer the phone and there is a long pause before you hear a voice speaking English with a decidedly Indian or Pakistani accent. It is a telemarketer trying to sell you something. The long pause is the time it takes for sound to travel the thousands of miles across the ocean from Asia.

Or maybe you call a toll-free 800 number for technical help with a computer problem. Again, the long pause, then an accented English voice answers with enough computer knowledge to answer your questions. More jobs sent to Asia.

So what kind of jobs can be relied upon to stay here, not sent to another country? Don't count on most manufacturing jobs, from making Reeboks to Levis, to steel and computers. Those factory jobs that helped build our middle clbutt with steady paychecks, health insurance and paid vacations are long gone. It is discouraging to see how those companies that we thought were American became multinational corporations, with no loyalty to U.S. workers.

The U.S. Senate and House recently pbutted the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), including Dominican Republic. This treaty is supposed to remove trade barriers that would allow developing countries to improve their quality of life. The pay to those workers will not be enough for them to afford to buy U.S. products. The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), pbutted in 1994, has shown that Mexico's workers are not any better off and have flocked to the U.S. for better jobs than they can get in their home country. Meanwhile, more U.S. workers' jobs have disappeared.

We know that jobs involving the agriculture industry will stay here. Any jobs that require personal contact will be in demand. That includes healthcare professionals, even though the diagnostic machines and instruments they use may be made in another country. Teachers that give students inspiration and attention will be needed, although computers will take up a bigger part of the learning process. Public safety workers such as police, firefighters, lawyers, judges and prison guards will have jobs.

Personal care cannot be exported, so barbers, hair stylists, bartenders, cooks, waiters, motel maids and child care providers will have jobs. Even in the darkest recessions, women had their hair done to boost their morale, and people could water their woes in beer. Investing in Supercuts or Budweiser stock was usually a good bet.

People who learn to be carpenters, roofers, electricians, plumbers, concrete masons and welders will be in demand, but the architects and engineers may be in Asia.

Auto mechanics and repair workers will always be needed with all the cars and accidents we have here. The cars, parts and tires may be manufactured in other countries.

China is becoming a world power, with billions of people who work for less than what is paid here. That low pay will not enable them to buy the products made in the U.S., so our markets will suffer.

Reporters, journalists and photographers will be needed to provide us with actual news and information, not canned, staged photo-ops or infomercials.

Our brightest hope is that our young people will be educated to be able to compete for jobs anywhere in the world. We must ensure that our students are given the kind of education that will prepare them for this global compebreastion. The jobs that will probably be available right here, the hands-on kind, should butture steady jobs. For students who like to work with their hands, vocational clbuttes in high schools can lead to well paying jobs right after they graduate. Not everyone should have to go to college to prepare for a job, but Allan Hanchicken College is available to everyone who will benefit, and offers many opportunities for education and training that will lead to a decent job.

Looking Forward runs every Friday, providing a progressive viewpoint on local issues.