A few days ago I sent out an email to everyone with a link to this article. I actually got a bit of feedback from members so I thought that I would share them with you on this blog.

You might want to take a look at the article again first. You can read it here. 

I asked everyone who emailed me if I could reproduce their comments. They all said yes, but some asked for anonymity and some asked for the names of the employers to be removed. Therefore, while the following was emailed to me by members I have decided to remove all names to protect the innocent.

Comments made by Ingeneers Network members about the article on the decline of the reputation of engineering.

As an engineer working in manufacturing ...for 25 years for an industry leader in the high tech business, my personal experience is that engineers are not valued both in terms of respect from the community nor in financial rewards as many other more glamorous professions... like real estate agents or business people... so I have decided to become a business owner and focus on running a business, rather than being an engineer

 .... the union workers organised wage workers in my company have managed to negotiate over the last 3 years massive wage gains to the point that an experienced technician is paid the same as me and more if they do overtime.

If anybody wants to get into the engineering profession I would suggest they think very carefully... if they are in it because they are good at those subjects at schools that are good for engineering rather than a burning desire to build things to make a better society then they could well be disappointed with the rewards they may get from the profession. 

 Very sobering.  I find it interesting that engineers are in short supply and yet engineering income is still way below parity in Australia. It suggest the primary problem is that Australia as a whole does not value engineering contributions to society.

 In electronics and software in particular, we are quite poorly paid compared to places like Korea.  You can ignore the normal caveats on cost of living here. Engineers in Taiwan and Korea get way more than their Australian counterparts just using the exchange rate. Germany is a whole new level again.

 The USA is also struggling with this. It seems that emerging economies recognise their inherent need for technological services but established and developed economies (at least by world parity comparisons) just chase $.

 I concur with the article. In my recent civil engineering operations overseas, I noted the absence of Australia as a venue for engineer Study Tours whereas, on previous projects, Australia successfully provided formal and on-the-job training for engineers from developing countries. So much so that many of these foreign engineers have moved to Australia and are employed as engineers here. Sad for the country that has lost these engineers as this would not have been the intention but it did verify the value of the training gained in Australia. Thailand, UK, Japan, Singapore and other locations are gaining the high ground for training but it is my view that there is potential to regain a training-venue reputation again.

 Many workplaces in Australia need to be restructured so as to have leadership by way of highly experienced engineers, including specialists, managing the careers of junior engineers in innovative engineering environments. In some workplaces, generic position descriptions have led to appointment if "managers" with little or no ability to engage in or understand professional engineering matters or to value-add to such workplaces or to mentor the careers of junior engineers. 

So what are your thoughts on the article? Do you agree with any of the above comments or do you have something extra to add. please leave your comments below.

 Also, vote in the poll here.

 Clint

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