Former Vice President Joe Biden urged displaced coal miners to take up coding and computer programming on Monday during a campaign swing through New Hampshire.
Biden, who recently claimed that blue-collar job losses should not stand in the way of a greener economy, made the comment while discussing his plans for expanding “jobs of the future” if elected in 2020. The former vice president, in particular, suggested retraining programs were the key for workers in industries hardest hit by globalization and increased environmental regulations, especially those in the coal mines of Appalachia.
“Anybody who can go down 3,000 feet in a mine can sure as hell learn to program as well,” Biden told an audience in Derry, New Hampshire. “Anybody who can throw coal into a furnace can learn how to program, for God’s sake!”
Iran Attempts to Take Credit for Downing US Aircraft, Killing Airmen, Then Fakes Evidence in Profoundly Slipshod Way
Trump-backed Potomac sewage cleanup complete after massive spill ahead of summer America250 celebrations
Nepo-Baby Nazi-Tattooed Dem Senate Candidate Decries ‘Anti-Semitism,’ Claims ‘Anti-Trans’ Agenda Cooked Up By ‘Billionaires’
Obama Presidential Center wants 100 unpaid volunteers while Valerie Jarrett makes $740K
Jasmine Crockett’s alleged security guard killed in standoff with Dallas SWAT team: reports
Legal Group Files Challenge to Virginia Abortion Ballot Push
Op-Ed: This Video from the Church of England Will Make You Proud of Your Christian Heritage
Iran faces financial death blow because of war
Virginia Democrats dig in on DHS funding line despite ISIS-linked shooting at ODU, illegal immigrant murder
Red States Offer Low Housing Prices as Yet Another Draw for Families
Ex-Dem senator admits to affair with former bodyguard in explosive court filing: ‘Romantic and Intimate’
The Economist Blasted with Flurry of Posts for Bemoaning Death of Murderous Ayatollah
Dems continue to reject GOP efforts to fund ICE in DHS fight despite terror concerns: ‘That’s on them’
Trump’s demand for colleges nationwide to fork over race data faces legal hurdle
State Department cuts fee to renounce US citizenship by 80% to $450
The former vice president’s comments come only weeks after he pledged at the sixth Democrat primary debate to “sacrifice” economic growth and potentially “displace thousands or hundreds of thousands of blue-collar workers” in the interests of a “greener economy.”
“The answer is yes because the opportunity for those workers to transition to high paying jobs is real,” Biden told the audience.
Regardless of the former vice president’s claim, job retraining and other transitionary programs for displaced workers have mostly failed to live up to their promise. Retraining programs are often a poor fit for blue-collar workers, an overwhelming majority of whom tend to be older and lack a college education, in terms of skill set and technological literacy. Even more troubling is that the jobs eligible for retraining often are either in short supply in areas hardest hit by globalization and automation, or pay significantly less than those initially displaced.
For instance, the average pay a coal miner can expect to make, under a contract negotiated by the United Mine Workers of America union, “comes out to at least $61,650 a year, and closer to $85,000 a year with overtime.” This does not include healthcare, pension, and other benefits usually offered by such jobs. Meanwhile, the jobs available after workforce retraining generally tend to be lower-paid hourly wage positions.
Iran Attempts to Take Credit for Downing US Aircraft, Killing Airmen, Then Fakes Evidence in Profoundly Slipshod Way
Trump-backed Potomac sewage cleanup complete after massive spill ahead of summer America250 celebrations
Nepo-Baby Nazi-Tattooed Dem Senate Candidate Decries ‘Anti-Semitism,’ Claims ‘Anti-Trans’ Agenda Cooked Up By ‘Billionaires’
Obama Presidential Center wants 100 unpaid volunteers while Valerie Jarrett makes $740K
Jasmine Crockett’s alleged security guard killed in standoff with Dallas SWAT team: reports
Legal Group Files Challenge to Virginia Abortion Ballot Push
Op-Ed: This Video from the Church of England Will Make You Proud of Your Christian Heritage
Iran faces financial death blow because of war
Virginia Democrats dig in on DHS funding line despite ISIS-linked shooting at ODU, illegal immigrant murder
Red States Offer Low Housing Prices as Yet Another Draw for Families
Ex-Dem senator admits to affair with former bodyguard in explosive court filing: ‘Romantic and Intimate’
The Economist Blasted with Flurry of Posts for Bemoaning Death of Murderous Ayatollah
Dems continue to reject GOP efforts to fund ICE in DHS fight despite terror concerns: ‘That’s on them’
Trump’s demand for colleges nationwide to fork over race data faces legal hurdle
State Department cuts fee to renounce US citizenship by 80% to $450
Biden, himself, should be aware of such circumstances. A study measuring the impact of retraining programs, both existing ones and those began under the Obama administration, found that while they helped enrollees find work faster, there was little proof such programs led individuals to jobs of equal or higher wage to those they lost.
Despite such evidence, Biden has not only continued touting the idea of job retraining, but has also promised to ban energy sources such as coal, fracking, and other fossil fuels if elected president—to the detriment of millions of workers in those fields.
Story cited here.
