By Mike Davin, online editor, Boating Industry magazine — We highlighted an interesting article from the Sarasota Herald-Tribune in our e-newsletter the other day. The article reported on the difficult decision facing Florida’s Manatee Technical Institute, which is weighing whether to cut its boat-building curriculum. Read more >>
I read a newspaper story today about a man in his 20s who, after being laid off by Hatteras Yachts, signed up for a N.C. community college computer tech program. In fact, community colleges across the state are reporting jumps in enrollment, due in part to laid-off workers seeking training in new fields, according to the thetimesnews.com. I would venture to guess that’s true across the country. Read more >>
By Mike Davin, Online Editor, Boating Industry — The situation between Mercury Marine and its union is becoming a little dizzying for anyone closely following the news. Several times over the past weeks — most recently on Saturday when an important deadline passed — it has appeared that the company’s pending shift of manufacturing jobs to Oklahoma was a done deal. Read more >>
I was driving in the car yesterday when a story came on National Public Radio about Columbia, Ky.-based houseboat builder Majestic Yachts. It’s no surprise in this economy that it was a sad story, at least at first. The article began by profiling Faye Womack, a former employee. She was part of a 27-person boat production team until orders stopped coming in last summer and CEO Jim Hadley was forced to lay off every single employee. He and the two other owners spent the winter trying to find odd jobs to pay the factory’s bills, according to NPR. Read more >>
Two weeks ago in a martial arts class, I accidentally hurt one of my best friends. Beyond the pain of the injury, it had real potential consequences for her. She was only a few weeks away from one of the many exams required to get her black belt, something she has been working toward for more than three years. I felt awful that I had hurt my friend and put her ability to reach such an important goal in jeopardy. Besides apologizing, I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t sleep well for several nights afterward, and I skipped class for a few days. I was afraid to face her and our mutual friends at the dojo. Who would want to train with me now? Read more >>
Tags: layoffs
My four-year-old son broke his arm playing in the yard last week. While he was incredibly brave in the hours and days that followed, it has changed him. As the pain has receded, he’s begun thinking out loud about how he’ll avoid breaking something else, as have his father and I. We want him to go back to having fun like he used to, but none of us wants to go back to the hospital anytime soon. The boating industry is in a similar situation. While I’m not sure the pain is receding yet, we know it will, at least to some degree. And we’ve all been thinking, whether to ourselves or out loud, about how we and our businesses will change as the industry rebounds. Read more >>
