Grease The Wheels Podcast
A Master Technician, a microphone, 30 years of experience in the Automotive Industry: buckle up! Come along as we take a look at the current state of the automotive industry from the point of view of the guys and gals turning the wrenches. So no matter what you fix, how you fix it, or how many tools you have to fix it with: welcome to the Grease the Wheels Nation. Also once in a while we take a look at the makes and models of cars we work on through the lenses of history, economics, politics, our own personal experiences and the experiences of our listeners. Special thanks to The Wrenching Network, Curien, Surfwrench, and Murray the dog.
Grease The Wheels Podcast
Episode 327: Then & Now
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On this week’s episode of Grease the Wheels, Uncle Jimmy watches the interview with Jim Farley, who unsurprisingly completely misses the point of why there is a technician shortage. He does mention that there is one, so that actually gives him a ton of credit in our book. To hammer the point home, Jimmy winds back the clock to the mid-50’s to the time of duck and cover drills, unprecedented economic prosperity, and Edsel’s. In this era, the average earnings of a mechanic was significantly higher as a percentage of the labor rate that the shop earned. Coincidentally the cost and amount of specialty tools, difficulty of the vehicles to work on, and overall social status of mechanics in the labor force has all become notably more precarious. Either way, things need to happen to make this balance a little more equitable, and make people trust mechanics more as a matter of principle.
Also, Uncle Jimmy forgets that Jim Farley IS the first cousin of the late, great ‘Fat Guy in a Little Coat’
This Episode of Grease the Wheels is brought to you in partnership with Surfwrench Digital! For more on Video MPI Training Visit https://www.surfwrench.com/video-mpi-training-landing/ to learn more. Video MPI Training built in the shop, by your Uncle Jimmy. Use code “GTW” for 50% off your training access!