Context: I'm a certified press operator who has worked in a two graphics related jobs since receiving my three year technical degree, and done several tasks between the two and even on my own involving prepress, printing, and even mailing.
Everywhere I go though, I'm always the outlier. I'm always the only one with a technical degree. At my last job, I had to tell a fellow press op that the printer was jamming because he used the wrong kind of paper and input the wrong paper weight, and so the printer picked up more than one sheet at a time. Basic stuff anyone should know. That's just one example of many, and now at my new job it's the same thing. I'm babysitting people who work in production and graphics about basic production and graphic knowledge. My current supervisor didn't even know how to use Adobe Illustrator ffs.
The absolute state of job markets these days is pathetic. In my situation and my friends' situations it seems the overqualified aren't trusted because they're young, (or in my case, I was once turned away because Im a girl and “most girls can't lift the press parts/web fed paper rolls… when I lifted them just fine at my last job… ) while the underqualified are tasked with everything because somehow being underpaid and overworked either made them become numb, or they have no sense of self worth. I can't imagine the bosses being so cruel as to trick someone into learning a trade while still paying them minimum wage, but here we are… Late stage capitalism, huh?
I'm at the end of my rope here. It seems like everyone and their grandmother's answer to not going to college was “pick a trade, that's always useful” and I have that AND a degree in communications and graphic design and I'm struggling to find decent work for decent pay with competent coworkers. My job now is alright in terms of pay, but I'm frustrated that nobody around me seems to have a clue as to what they're doing. It makes the whole job harder because I tell them where they went wrong when stuff messes up and they just straight up don't believe me.
Anyone else in trades finding the same issues? It's like education is the most important thing in the world until you hit the work force, and then poof, suddenly all your skills give you is awareness not to be tricked by greedy bosses, and there seems to be nothing but those around.