Comments on: 12 Indestructible Careers (from MSN)

By: VB

VB — Fri, 13 Jul 2007 09:02:30 +0000

Any job, not just engineering, with a defense company (Lockheed, Northrop, Raytheon, etc…) – they all require a citizenship.

By: Mike

Mike — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 23:33:11 +0000

Others -

1. Veterinarian: people love their pets.
2. Dentists: people love their teeth.
3. Pornographers: nuff said.

By: lorax

lorax — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 23:24:04 +0000

Construction work and any other work that just requires brawn and taking easily understood directions could easily be filled by migrant workers.

Scientists are already being outsourced (eg drug research firms outsource lab testing).

Mechanics could easily be outsourced by making cars more interchangeable. Do the actual expensive repair work in China. Shipping is relatively cheap in bulk, its the relatively expensive intra-national shipping costs that might derail this. (This is done today to some extent – engines are built in Japan but placed in cars in Georgia.)

Getting running Mr Antelope.

By: db

db — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 20:17:22 +0000

ENGINEERS: I keep seeing articles about the growing weakness of engineering in this country, as we are turning out ever fewer numbers of engineering (and computer science) graduates. And in recent history a sizeable number of engineering graduates were foreign students who came to the US for their education, often to take their knowledge back home. The long shot of it is that engineering in the US is in a troubled state. Also there is little about engineering that would prevent it from being offshored.

DOCTORS: Doctors may not be offshorable, but there is already a growing trend to send lab tests (like X-ray and medical sample diagnostics) to India to be completed there.

TEACHERS: Likewise there are up-and-coming tutorial services in India that are giving US-based tutoring companies a run for their money. It doesn’t take much more to see that the extent to which computer-based education is embraced opens up teaching for increasing pressure from offshoring, even if there are local teachers. I see the threat being more that teachers would be forced to teach even larger class sizes and be forced to step through pre-prepared computerized curriculum that was prepared by the lowest (e.g., foreign) bidders (basically turning teaching into glorified babysitters while the computer program does the teaching).

FARMERS: Farming has been pretty strange for a while. It’s already manipulated by subsidies. And, keep an eye on your food labels. If farming can’t be offshored, what’s all this canned/boxed/processed food doing in our stores that comes from China, etc.??

P.S. — I’m talking more about offshoring here, but offshoring is just the most extreme example of outsourcing.

By: broknowrchlatr

broknowrchlatr — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 19:57:18 +0000

Beer manufacturers. In the height of the depression, there is still a demand for beer (likely, even higher). I would say that is one job that is insured against the economy failing.

Now, if you are strictly talking about truely indestructible careers, the list is a bit different as many of these positions could be replaced with a machine.

I would have the list for that be as follows (based on necessity of being able to relate to people)
1) Religious Leader
2) Teacher
3) Psychiatrist

By: Kristen

Kristen — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 18:04:32 +0000

Some types of lawyering–anything involving direct advocacy or in-court representation (as opposed to structuring transactional agreements or everyone’s favorite pastime, document review) will continue to be un outsourceable because of the monopoly provided by the various states’ professional licensing organizations and prohibitions on the unauthorized practice of law.

By: Mercedes

Mercedes — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 17:24:08 +0000

cashier lol!

By: KC

KC — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 17:20:04 +0000

Engineers weren’t on the list, but like a Scientist, it depends on the work. Some will eventually go, but other parts will stay.

By: Chris

Chris — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 17:16:13 +0000

Anything in the direct service industry cannot be outsourced. Repairmen/handymen, pest control, lawn care, etc.

By: Patrick

Patrick — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 17:01:21 +0000

I think anything in the transportation industry – airline pilots, train engineers, truckers, bus drivers, subway operators, etc. Yes, some of them are/will be automated, but it will be many years before people are completely replaced.

Mechanics. Most factories have gone automated, but to diagnose and repair cars, planes, etc. a person needs to do the work.