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MAY 8 1970

d o c u m en t collection

Bulletin 1 6 3 9

U.S. D E P A R T M E N T O F L A B O R

B u r e a u of L a b o r Statistics

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technician

m anpow er

1 9 6 6 - 8 0

Bulletin 1639

March 1970

U.S. D E P A R T M E N T OF LABOR

George P. Shultz, Secretary

BUREAU OF LABOR STA TISTIC S 

Geoffrey H. Moore, Commissioner

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P r e f a c e

This report presents the results of a study of engineering and 

science technician manpower requirements and supply conducted by 

the Bureau of Labor Statistics with the support of the National Science 

Foundation. It is the second major study of technician manpower 

undertaken by the Bureau with the assistance of the Foundation.

The report was prepared by Michael F. Crowley, with the assistance of Elinor W. Abramson, under the direction of Neal H. Rosenthal 

in the Bureau’s Division of Manpower and Occupational Outlook. 

Daniel Hecker and Annie Lefkowitz participated in the research.

iii

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C o n te n ts

Page

Highlights------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1

Introduction--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3

Chapter I. Employment and outlook--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5

Employment, 1966 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5

Requirements, 1966-80----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6

Employment grow th--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7

Changing employment requirements by technician occupation-------------------------------------------------------------- 8

Changing employment requirements by industry------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 8

Replacements needs----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 8

Supply------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 8

Meeting manpower needs-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 11

Chapter II. Directions for future research---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 13

Manpower utilization ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 13

Occupational detail--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 14

Relationship of training to occupational specialty--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 14

Followup studies--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 15

Ways people qualify for technician jobs -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 15

A. Preemployment post-secondary training------------------------------------------------------------ 15

Bachelor of technology programs-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 15

Private schools------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 15

B. Upgradings---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 16

Transfers to other fields of work------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 16

Table. Employment of technicians by occupational specialty, estimated 1966 and projected 1980 requirements--------- 7

Charts:

1. Estimated employment of technicians, by occupation, 1966 -------------------------------------------------------------- 6

2. Percent increase in employment requirements for technicians 1966-80, selected industries-------------------------- 9

3. New technicians, by source of training, 1965 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10

Appendixes:

A. Statistical tables------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 19

A-l. Estimated employment of technicians, by occupation and industry, 1966 ------------------------------------- 20

A-2. Percent distribution of estimated employment of technicians, by occupation and industry, 1966 ---------- 21

A-3. Projected 1980 employment requirements for technicians, by occupation and industry---------------------- 22

A-4. Percent distribution of projected 1980 employment requirements for technicians,

by occupation and industry------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 23

A-5. Ratio of technician to science and engineering employment, by industry, 1966 ------------------------------- 24

B. Coverage, definitions, and projection methods-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 25

IV

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H ighlights

More than 1 million new technicians will be required to 

meet manpower requirements resulting from employment 

growth and replacement needs between 1966 and 1980:

500.000 for growth, from nearly 900,000 employed in 

1966 to approximately 1.4 million required in 1980, 

an increase of 57 percent.

150.000 to replace those employed in 1966 who will 

die or retire.

375.000 to replace those employed in 1966 who will 

transfer to other occupations.

Employment growth of technicians will vary among 

the different technician occupations:

Physics technicians and mathematics technicians are 

expected to show the fastest growth rates among the 

technician occupational specialties, 95 percent and 91 

percent, respectively. Employment requirements for 

engineering technicians are expected to increase about 

50 percent.

Growth will result from many factors including:

Increasing utilization of technicians relative to total 

employment, resulting from expansion of research and 

development activities and increasing complexity of industrial processes.

Rapid growth of industries employing large numbers of 

technicians.

Requirements for technicians in manufacturing are 

projected to increase at about the same rate of growth as 

that of technicians in all industries:

However, the rate of growth will vary among manufacturing industries. The rate of growth of technicians 

will be fastest in machinery (87 percent) and electrical 

equipment (74 percent).

Among other industries, greater-than-average growth 

rates in technician employment requirements are expected 

in engineering and architectural services (90 percent) and 

colleges and universities (84 percent).

The sources of technician manpower from which 

employment requirements must be met include graduates of preemeployment technician training offered in 

post-secondary schools, under the Manpower Development 

and Training Act, and by employers; individuals with technician-related training obtained in 4-year college programs 

or in the Armed Forces; and employees who are upgraded 

from other occupations:

Graduates of preemployment technician training offered in post-secondary schools are the type of technician most desired by employers.

Upgrading is used to fill jobs primarily when workers 

are not available from other sources of training.

If the number of entrants to technician jobs from each 

source of supply were to remain at the 1965 level between 

1966 and 1979 (1979 graduates will be the last ones available for employment in 1980), supply would be short of 

manpower requirements by about 300,000.

If past trends in the patterns of entry to technician 

jobs from preemployment and technician-related training 

continue, about 1.2 million workers would enter technician 

jobs from these sources between 1966 and 1979:

Only about 120,000 technicians or 10 percent of all 

entrants would have to be upgraded to meet manpower 

needs, compared with 33 percent in 1965.

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2

Graduates of preemployment post-secondary training 

would increase to three-fifths of all entrants between 

1966 and 1979, up from about 27 percent in 1965.

To achieve the continued rapid growth of preemployment post-secondary technician training, great efforts 

are needed to build new or expand existing technical 

institutes, junior colleges, and other post-secondary 

schools that train technicians; to attract students to 

these schools; and to assure a sufficient number of 

teachers to provide the training.

Several data gaps become apparent in analyzing technician manpower requirements and supply. These gaps or

problem areas can be grouped in the following subject 

areas:

The identification of the reasons for specific utilization 

patterns by industry.

The need for greater occupational detail.

The relationship between training and entry jobs.

Identification of all methods of qualifying for entry 

jobs.

The need for statistics on occupational transfers.

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Intro duction

Up-to-date information on future manpower requirements for, and supply of, technicians is needed by vocational counselors, education planners, those responsible for 

national manpower policies and programs, and industry 

officials concerned with the effective utilization of their 

technical employees. This report presents information on 

projected requirements for, and supply of, technicians to 

1980 and supersedes the 1975 projections published in the 

earlier comprehensive study of technicians conducted by 

the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Technician M anpower:

R equ irem en ts, Resources, an d Training N eeds, Bulletin 

1512, 1966.

This report provides new insights into the factors 

affecting the supply and demand for technicians by incorporating data that have become available since publication of the former report. It also uses the basic assumptions 

underlying the Bureau’s projections of 1980 industry manpower requirements, including assumptions concerning 

technological change, the level of national unemployment, 

and the world’s political situation. (See appendix B.) In 

addition to presenting projections of manpower requirements and supply, this report identifies problems in technician manpower and indicates areas for future study and 

research.

The projections of requirements for technicians in this 

study were based, in large part, on past utilization patterns 

of technicians relative to other workers. (See appendix B.) 

Therefore, the requirements projections reflect supplydemand conditions in the recent past. Should supplydemand conditions appear in the 1970’s that differ from 

those of the early and mid-1960’s, effects would be felt 

that are not reflected in this study. For example, if for an 

extended period of time the supply of techncians exceeds 

the demand, unlike the recent past, employers would most 

likely change their manpower utilization patterns to use 

more technicians than are reflected in the projections presented in this report.

Because of the various data gaps and weaknesses encountered in the study, the projections of requirements and 

the different analyses of supply indicate general order of 

magnitude and direction and not estimates of exact 

numbers. Many of these data gaps and weaknesses are 

detailed in chapter II, Directions for Future Research.

3

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C h a p t e r I

E m p l o y m e n t a n d O u t l o o k

Technicians play a vital role in our expanding, technically oriented economy. These workers directly or

indirectly support scientists and engineers in every phase of

their work, including the designing of equipment, the development of new products and processes, the production of

goods, and the maintenance of machines and materials.

Engineering and science technician1 jobs have a

greater practical orientation and are more limited in scope

than those of the professional engineer or scientist. Many

technician jobs require the ability to analyze and solve engineering and science problems and to prepare reports on

experiments or tests. Some of these jobs require considerable aptitude in mathematics; others require the ability

to visualize objects in three dimensions and to sketch and

draw. Sometimes, these jobs require manipulative abilities

associated with the skilled crafts, but this ability is

secondary to technical skills.

Many technicians work in research and development

under the supervision of a scientist or engineer. In research

and development activities, technicians help conduct experiments by setting up and operating complex equipment,

or assisting in the design, fabrication, and assembling of

experimental equipment and scientific instruments. In

production operations, technicians may be engaged in

quality control, inspection, and testing, or they may act as

liaison between engineering and production departments.

Others sell technical products, install and maintain complex

machinery and equipment, or provide technical services to

customers.

This report classifies engineering and science technicians into four occupational groups according to the

specialty or scientific discipline to which they are most

closely related— draftsmen; engineering and physical

science technicians; life science technicians; and “other

technicians,” a miscellaneous group that includes computer

programers and surveyors. Excluded from coverage are

“technicians” who work with practitioners in the health

fields caring for patients; workers in business related technologies and public services such as library assistants and

legal secretaries; and workers classified as craftsmen such as

instrument repairmen.

Employment, 1966

Nearly 900,000 engineering and science technicians

were employed in the United States in 1966. Engineering

and physical science technicians numbered nearly

420,000— more than 45 percent of all technicians. Draftsmen accounted for more than 270,000— about 3 out of

every 10 technicians. Employment of life science technicians represented about 8 percent of the total, or about

70,000; and other technicians, about 14 percent of the

total, numbered approximately 125,000. (See chart 1.)

In the engineering and physical science category, the

largest number (183,300) were electrical and electronic

engineering technicians. Other engineering technicians, including mechanical and industrial engineering, accounted

for about 116,000. Physical science technicians numbered

slightly over 120,000. Included in this classification were

chemical technicians, about 60,000; physics technicians,

more than 10,000; mathematics technicians, over 5,000;

and all other physical science technicians, approximately

44,000.

More than two-fifths of all technicians were employed

in manufacturing in 1966, about 2 out of every 3 of whom

worked in electrical equipment, machinery, chemicals and

allied products, aircraft and parts, and fabricated metals

products. The heavy concentration of technicians in these

industries reflects the complexity of their products and

manufacturing processes and their large research and development (R&D) programs. About 75 percent of all R & D

Footnotes appear on pp. 16-17.

5

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Chart 1.

ESTIMATED EM PLO YM EN T OF TECHNICIANS, BY OCCUPATION, 1966

Total Employment = 886,900

N o te : B e c a u s e o f ro u n d in g , s u m s o f in d iv id u a l ite m s m ay n o t e q u a l t o t a l s .

S o u rc e : B ureau o f Labor S t a t i s t i c s .

expenditures in private industry in 1966 were in these five

manufacturing industries. 3

Significant numbers of technicians also are employed

in private nonmanufacturing industries. In 1966, almost

100,000 technicians were employed in engineering and

architectural services, 40,000 in miscellaneous business

services, and about 32,000 in the communications industries.

Nearly 165,000 technicians were government employees, mainly in the Federal Government. Colleges and

universities employed about 32,000 technicians. A relatively small number (6,500) worked for nonprofit organizations.

Almost one-half of all engineering and physical science

technicians were concentrated in manufacturing and reflected the large number employed in electrical equipment

(64,000) and chemicals industries (24,000). About onefourth were employed in government. Communications and

miscellaneous business industries employed significant

numbers.

Reflecting the need for drafting services throughout

the goods producing sector of the economy, draftsmen also

were concentrated heavily in manufacturing industries

(132,500 or about one-half). A large number, about

68,000, also were employed in firms providing engineering

and architectural services.

Life science technicians were concentrated in government and in colleges and universities; more than one-fourth

were employed in each industry. The large number of life

science technicians in these industries reflect large research

and development programs concerned with problems such

as heart disease, cancer, birth defects, and mental health.

The “other technician” category generally follows the

industry distribution of the technician group as a whole.

Notable exceptions are contract construction and engineering and architectural services, which employ relatively large

numbers of surveyors.

Requirements, 1966-80

More than 1 million technicians will be needed

between 1966 and 1980 to meet employment growth and

to replace those technicians who will die, retire, or separate

from the labor force for other reasons, or transfer to other

occupations. Approximately 500,000 technicians, about

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one-half of total technicians manpower needs, will result

from employment growth; 375,000 will be needed to replace experienced technicians who will transfer to other

fields of work; and 150,000 to replace those who will die,

retire, or leave the labor force for other reasons.

Employment growth. Employment requirements for

technicians are expected to increase about 500,000

between 1966 and 1980, and will rise to approximately 1.4

million from the nearly 900,000 employed in 1966. (See

following tabulation.) This rise represents a growth of

approximately 57 percent, or an annual average increase of

about 4 percent. This projected 1966-80 annual average

increase is slightly slower than that shown during the

1961-66 period (about 4.5 percent), and in large part reflects the anticipated slowdown in the rate of increase of

research and development activities. Growth of requirements for technicians is expected to result from continued

economic growth, especially in fields where the increasing

complexity of new products and processes is expected to

increase the demand for highly trained personnel— for example, the improvement of existing instruments and the

development of complex new industrial instruments; the

increasing use of numerical control in machining; the use of

microcircuits; and electron beam or laser welding.

Growth also will stem from an anticipated expansion

of research and development activities (R&D). Nevertheless, the rate of growth of technicians in research and

development thought the 1970’s is expected to be slower

than during the late 1950’s and 1960’s because of an

expected slowdown in the rate of growth of research and

development expenditures. For example, from 1966 to

1980, requirements for scientists and engineers in research and development are projected to increase about

two-thirds, However, from 1957 to 1966, a shorter time

span, they increased nearly three-fourths.4

Although the factors described above will increase utilization of technicians relative to total employment, the ratio

of technicians to scientists and engineers— one of the most

common measures of technician utilization— is expected

to approximate the 1966 level in 1980, about 63 technicians to every 100 scientists and engineers. This contrasts

with most other recent studies of technicians, which have

indicated that the ratio of technicians to scientists and

engineers is expected to increase in the years ahead.5 In

view of the projected rapid increases in requirements for

engineers and scientists and prospective shortages of these

workers, employers can be expected to attempt to utilize

more effectively their high level scientific and engineering

staffs by hiring more technicians for repetitive techncial

functions. Increased utilization of technicians would free

high level scientists and engineers for professional work and

reduce the cost of trained technical manpower because

technicians generally are paid less than scientists and engineers. However, surveys conducted by the Bureau of Labor

Statistics6 indicate that the utilization patterns of technicians has remained relatively constant during the 1961-66

period in private industry as a whole. Nevertheless, among

individual industries, the utilization patterns have

shifted.7 Among the explanations offered for the almost

stable ratio of technicians to scientists and engineers in private industry, as a whole, over the 1961-66 period are: (1)

The supply of technicians has been inadequate to meet the

Employment of technicians by occupational specialty, estimated 1966 and projected 1980 requirements

Occupation 1966

employment

Project

1980

requirements

Percent

increase,

1966-80

Technicians, all occupations - - 886,900 1,395,700 57.4

Draftsmen - ---- 272,300 434,300 59.5

Engineering and physical science technicians-------------------------------- 419,300 646,800 54.3

Engineering technicians-------------------------------------------------------- 299,200 453,800 51.7

Chemical technicians------------------------------------------------------------ 60,500 96,500 59.5

Physics technicians-------------------------------------------------------------- 10,600 20,700 95.3

Mathematics technicians------------------------------------------------------ 5,300 10,100 90.6

Other physical science technicians----------------------------------------- 43,900 65,700 49.7

Life science technicians - - - _ - - 70,000 108,900 55.6

Other technicians ---- _ - - 125,100 205,800 64.5

NOTE: Because of rounding, sums of individual items may not equal totals.

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demand; (2) many technicians have been “upgraded” to

scientist and engineering positions; and (3) the practices of

some industries, either voluntary or involuntary, do not

utilize effectively more technicians relative to scientists and

engineers.

Changing employment requirements by technician

occupation. Physics and mathematics technicians are expected to grow the fastest of all the technician specialties.

Employment requirements for physics technician are

expected to increase to 20,700 in 1980 from the 10,600

employed in 1966, an increase of about 95 percent. Mathematics technicians are expected to increase from about

5,300 to slightly over 10,000, an increase of about 90 percent. These rapid increases result from the need for technicians to support the rapidly increasing number of

physicists and mathematicians engaged in research and

development in colleges and universities, government, and

in the machinery, electrical equipment, and aircraft industries.

Requirements for engineering technicians, the largest

technician specialty, are expected to grow to more than

450,000 in 1980 from the nearly 300,000 employed in

1966— an increase of about 52 percent. This rate of

growth is slower than that for all technicians, but because

of the relative size of this field, more persons will be needed

in this technician occupation from 1966-80 than in any

other. Draftsmen, life science technicians, and other technicians are expected to increase about three-fifths, or about

the same rate as all technicians in the economy.

Changing employment requirements by industry.

Requirements for technicians in some industries are expected to increase more rapidly than the increase anticipated for all technicians in the economy (57 percent).

Among the industries expected to show faster than average

growth in technician employment are engineering and architectural services (91 percent) and colleges and universities

(84 percent). (See chart 2.)

Technician requirements in manufacturing industries,

as a whole, are expected to increase approximately 56 percent, about the same rate anticipated for technician growth

in all industries combined. However, requirements for technicians in some manufacturing industries, including the

machinery and electrical equipment industries, are expected

to increase faster than the average for technicians in all

manufacturing.

Growth of technician requirements in some industries

will result primarily from increases in the utilization of

technicians relative to total employment. In other industries, growth in technician requirements will result primarily from increases in total industry employment. For

example, technician requirements in the ordnance industry

are expected to increase 17 percent over the 1966-80

period, while total employment in this industry is expected

to decline slightly. In this industry, the utilization rate of

technicians to total employment is expected to increase

from 7.5 per 100 in 1966 to 9.0 per 100 in 1980, reflecting, in part, the continuing complexity of modern weapons

systems. In contrast, the anticipated 91-percent increase in

technician requirements in engineering and architectural

services is due almost entirely to expected increases in total

industry employment. The utilization of technicians in this

industry is expected to remain relatively constant at 37 per

100 employees between 1966 and 1968.

Replacements needs. In addition to technicians required because of increased requirements between 1966

and 1980, many others will be needed to replace those who

are expected to retire, die, or transfer to other occupations.

Losses due to deaths, retirements, and other separations

from the labor force are expected to number about

150,000 between 1966 and 1980. Transfers are expected to

result in even greater needs than deaths and retirements if

technicians continue to leave the field at the same rate as

they did in the early 1960’s. These losses are expected to

average about 3 percent of each year’s employment, or

about 375,000 over the entire 1966-80 period.

Supply

Workers acquire technician training in many ways. One

way is through training taken expressly to prepare for entry

level technician jobs--preemployment occupational training-- which is offered by post-secondary schools;

employers; and government, primarily under the Manpower

Development and Training Act.

Workers also qualify for technician jobs in the Armed

Forces or through training or experience designed to prepare them for other types of work. For example, those who

do not complete bachelor’s degree programs in engineering

or science may qualify for some entry level technician jobs.

Another way of qualifying for technician work is

through upgrading— experience in a technician-related job,

often combined with some academic training. Upgradings

have been the largest single source of new entrants to technician jobs in recent years. (See chart 3.) In 1965,8 an estimated 24,000 workers were upgraded to technician occupations. Those who are upgraded included workers in other

occupations who generally have completed some academic

training. Often, these workers have attended night school

part time, but some are dropouts of 4-year9 and 2-year

post-secondary schools; others have had military technician

training.10

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Chart 2.

P E R C E N T IN C R E A S E IN E M P L O Y M E N T R E Q U IR E M E N T S 

FO R T E C H N IC IA N S 1966-80, S E L E C T E D IN D U S T R IE S

2 0

Percent

40 60

• •

80 1 0 0

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1 0

P r e e m p l o y m e n t p o s t - s e c o n d a r y s c h o o l t r a i n i n g p r o ­

v id e s t h e t e c h n i c i a n s t h a t g e n e r a ll y a r e in g r e a t e s t d e m a n d , 

a c c o r d in g t o i n f o r m a t i o n g a t h e r e d b y B u r e a u o f L a b o r S t a ­

t i s t i c s r e p r e s e n t a t i v e s in i n te r v i e w s w i t h o f f i c i a l s o f c o m ­

p a n ie s e m p l o y i n g la r g e n u m b e r s o f t e c h n i c i a n s . T h is t y p e o f 

t r a i n i n g is o f f e r e d p r i m a r i ly b y t e c h n i c a l i n s t i t u t e s , j u n i o r 

a n d c o m m u n i t y c o lle g e s , a r e a v o c a t i o n a l - te c h n ic a l s c h o o ls , 

a n d b y e x t e n s i o n d iv is io n s o f e n g in e e r i n g c o lle g e s . T h e s e 

p o s t - s e c o n d a r y s c h o o l s u s u a l ly o f f e r 2 y e a r s o f f u l l- t i m e 

t e c h n i c a l t r a i n i n g w h i c h h a s le s s t h e o r e c t i c a l a n d g e n e r a l 

e d u c a t i o n c o n t e n t t h a n t h a t g iv e n in t h e f i r s t 2 y e a r s o f a 

4 - y e a r e n g in e e r i n g o r s c ie n c e c u r r i c u l u m . 11 I n 1 9 6 5 ,1 2 th e s e 

p r o g r a m s s u p p l i e d a n e s t i m a t e d 2 0 , 0 0 0 n e w e n t r a n t s i n t o 

t e c h n i c i a n o c c u p a t i o n s , o r s lig h tly le s s t h a n 3 o u t o f e v e r y 

1 0 n e w e n t r a n t s . T h e p r o p o r t i o n o f n e w t e c h n i c i a n s t r a i n e d 

in p o s t - s e c o n d a r y p r o g r a m s h a s b e e n r is in g s in c e t h e e a r l y 

1 9 6 0 ’s, a n d in 1 9 6 5 t h e y w e r e t h e s e c o n d la r g e s t s in g le 

s o u r c e o f n e w e n t r a n t s i n t o t e c h n i c i a n o c c u p a t i o n s .

C o lle g e a n d u n i v e r s i t y b a c h e l o r ’ s d e g r e e p r o g r a m s a ls o 

p l a y a s i g n i f ic i a n t r o l e in p r e p a r i n g p e o p le f o r t e c h n i c i a n 

o c c u p a t i o n s ; 1 3 s e v e r a l 4 - y e a r c o lle g e p r o g r a m s a r e d e s ig n e d 

s p e c if ic a lly t o t r a i n t e c h n i c i a n s . A ls o , s o m e o f t h e w o r k 

d o n e b y t e c h n i c i a n s o v e r la p s t h e w o r k d o n e b y s c i e n t i s t s 

a n d e n g in e e r s s o t h a t s c ie n c e a n d e n g in e e r i n g c u r r ic u lu m s

q u a li f y s t u d e n t s f o r s o m e t e c h n i c i a n j o b s , p r i m a r i ly t h o s e 

e m p h a s i z in g t h e o r y r a t h e r t h a n p r o d u c t i o n o r i e n t e d o r 

m a n i p u l a t i v e s k ills . I n 1 9 6 5 , a b o u t 1 0 p e r c e n t o f a ll n e w 

e n t r a n t s t o t e c h n i c i a n j o b s ( a b o u t 7 , 0 0 0 ) h a d a t t e n d e d 

4 - y e a r c o lle g e s ; a b o u t o n e - h a l f o f t h e s e e n t r a n t s h e ld a 

b a c h e l o r ’s d e g r e e .1 4

T h e M a n p o w e r D e v e lo p m e n t a n d T r a i n i n g A c t o f 1 9 6 2 

( M D T A ) , a s a m e n d e d , p r o v i d e s t e c h n i c i a n t r a i n i n g t h a t 

s tr e s s e s a p p l i e d t e c h n i c a l c o u r s e s b u t o f f e r s l i t t l e t h e o r y o r 

g e n e r a l e d u c a t i o n c o u r s e s . G r a d u a t e s o f M D T A t r a i n i n g 

p r o g r a m s p r o v i d e d a r e la ti v e ly s m a ll n u m b e r o f t h e n e w 

t e c h n i c i a n e n t r a n t s ( a b o u t 5 , 6 0 0 ) in 1 9 6 5 .

E m p l o y e r t r a i n i n g p r o g r a m s f o r t e c h n i c i a n s u s u a lly 

p r o v id e c la s s r o o m t r a i n i n g i n t e g r a t e d w i t h e x te n s i v e o n - 

t h e - j o b t r a i n i n g . T e c h n i c i a n s t r a i n e d b y e m p l o y e r s r e p r e ­

s e n t e d a n e s t i m a t e d 2 0 p e r c e n t o f a ll n e w e n t r a n t s in 1 9 6 5 .

T e c h n i c i a n t r a i n i n g p r o g r a m s u s u a l ly a r e i n i t i a t e d b y 

e m p l o y e r s w h e n a s u f f i c i e n t n u m b e r o f t e c h n i c i a n s t r a i n e d 

b y o t h e r m e t h o d s a r e n o t a v a ila b le . F o r e x a m p l e , j u n i o r 

a n d c o m m u n i t y c o lle g e s g e n e r a lly f u r n i s h t r a i n i n g t o m e e t 

e x is ti n g d e m a n d i n t h e i r l o c a l it i e s f o r r e la ti v e ly la rg e 

n u m b e r s o f t e c h n i c i a n s . I n s o m e i n s t a n c e s , h o w e v e r , t r a i n ­

in g s o u r c e s m a y n o t b e p r o v i d in g a n a d e q u a t e s u p p l y o f 

t e c h n i c i a n s . F u r t h e r m o r e , e m p l o y e r s s o m e ti m e s n e e d

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s p e c ia l iz e d s k ills t h a t c a n b e m e t o n l y t h r o u g h t h e i r o w n 

t r a i n i n g p r o g r a m s .

I n f o r m a t i o n a b o u t c a r e e r p a t t e r n s o f p e r s o n s s e p a r a t e d 

f r o m t h e A r m e d F o r c e s i n d i c a t e d t h a t in 1 9 6 5 , f e w e r t h a n 

2 p e r c e n t o f a ll n e w e n t r a n t s , o r a b o u t 1 ,5 0 0 , w e r e h i r e d 

d i r e c t l y a f t e r s e p a r a t i o n f r o m t h e A r m e d F o r c e s . A l t h o u g h 

t h e n u m b e r o f p e r s o n s s e p a r a t e d f r o m t h e A r m e d F o r c e s 

w i t h m i l i t a r y t e c h n i c i a n t r a i n i n g in a n y g iv e n y e a r is la r g e , 

t h e p r o p o r t i o n w h o e n t e r c iv ilia n t e c h n i c i a n j o b s d i r e c t l y is 

b e li e v e d t o b e s m a ll. T r a i n i n g r e c e iv e d in t h e A r m e d F o r c e s 

u s u a l ly is le s s t h e o r e t i c a l t h a n t h a t g iv e n in c iv ilia n t e c h ­

n i c a l s c h o o l s , a n d m il i ta r y e q u i p m e n t u s u a l ly is u n l i k e t h e 

e q u i p m e n t u s e d in t h e c iv ilia n s e c to r . H o w e v e r , s o m e m il i ­

t a r y t e c h n i c i a n t r a i n i n g m a y b e d i r e c t l y a p p li c a b l e t o 

d e f e n s e o r i e n t e d a c t i v it i e s . M o s t m il i t a r y t e c h n i c i a n s , t h e r e ­

f o r e , m u s t u n d e r g o a d d i t i o n a l t r a i n i n g b e f o r e t h e y c a n 

e n t e r c iv ilia n t e c h n i c i a n j o b s .

M eeting m anpow er needs

A p p r o x i m a t e l y 1 m il l io n t e c h n i c i a n s ( 1 , 0 3 4 , 0 0 0 ) w ill 

b e r e q u i r e d o v e r t h e 1 9 6 6 - 8 0 p e r i o d t o m e e t m a n p o w e r 

n e e d s f o r e m p l o y m e n t g r o w t h a n d r e p l a c e m e n t o f w o r k e r s 

e m p l o y e d in 1 9 6 6 w h o w ill d ie , r e t i r e , o r t r a n s f e r t o o t h e r 

o c c u p a t i o n s . H o w c a n t h e s e n e e d s b e m e t f r o m t h e v a r io u s 

s o u r c e s o f s u p p l y o f t e c h n i c i a n m a n p o w e r ?

I f t h e n u m b e r o f e n t r a n t s t o t e c h n i c i a n j o b s f r o m e a c h 

s o u r c e o f s u p p l y w o u l d r e m a in a t t h e 1 9 6 5 le v e l b e t w e e n 

1 9 6 6 a n d 1 9 7 9 ,15 a b o u t 1 m il l io n p e r s o n s w o u l d e n t e r o v e r 

t h e p e r i o d . H o w e v e r , n o t a ll w h o e n t e r t e c h n i c i a n j o b s f r o m 

1 9 6 6 t o 1 9 7 9 w ill r e m a in in t h e f i e l d in 1 9 8 0 . A f t e r a ll o w ­

in g f o r lo s s e s f o r t r a n s f e r s , r e t i r e m e n t s , o r d e a t h s , o n ly 

a b o u t 8 0 0 , 0 0 0 o f t h e 1 m i l l i o n n e w e n t r a n t s b e t w e e n 1 9 6 6 

a n d 1 9 7 9 s till w o u l d b e in t h e f i e l d in 1 9 8 0 .1 6 A n a d d i t i o n a l

3 0 0 . 0 0 0 w o r k e r s w o u l d h a v e t o e n t e r o v e r t h e p e r i o d t o 

o b t a i n a n e t 2 3 4 , 0 0 0 17 e n t r a n t s n e e d e d t o m e e t m a n p o w e r 

r e q u i r e m e n t s o f 1 ,0 3 4 ,0 0 0 .

I f t h i s g a p b e t w e e n s u p p l y a n d d e m a n d o f 3 0 0 , 0 0 0 

w o r k e r s w e r e t o b e m e t b y u p g r a d in g a d d i t i o n a l w o r k e r s , 

u p g r a d in g s w o u l d i n c r e a s e f r o m 3 3 p e r c e n t t o n e a r l y 5 0 

p e r c e n t o f a ll e n t r a n t s . H o w e v e r , i n te r v i e w s w i t h c o m p a n y 

o f f i c i a l s h a v e i n d i c a t e d t h a t e m p l o y e r s m a y p r e f e r t o a d j u s t 

t h e i r u t i l i z a t i o n p a t t e r n s r a t h e r t h a n u p g r a d e la r g e n u m b e r s 

o f w o r k e r s .

A s n o t e d e a r l ie r , e m p l o y e r s w o u l d p r e f e r t o h a v e t h e

3 0 0 . 0 0 0 a d d i t i o n a l t e c h n i c i a n s g r a d u a t e f r o m p r e e m p l o y ­

m e n t p o s t - s e c o n d a r y s c h o o l t e c h n i c i a n t r a i n i n g p r o g r a m s . I t 

w o u l d b e p r e f e r a b l e , t h e r e f o r e , i f t h e a d d i t i o n a l 3 0 0 , 0 0 0 

t e c h n i c i a n s t h a t w o u l d b e r e q u i r e d t o m e e t t e c h n i c i a n m a n ­

p o w e r n e e d s w e r e t o c o m e f r o m t h i s s o u r c e . G r a d u a t e s o f

p r e e m p l o y m e n t p o s t - s e c o n d a r y p r o g r a m s w o u l d t o t a l a b o u t 

4 5 p e r c e n t o f a ll e n t r a n t s d u r i n g t h e 1 9 6 6 - 7 9 p e r i o d , c o m ­

p a r e d t o 2 7 p e r c e n t in 1 9 6 5 . U p g r a d in g s w o u l d t o t a l 2 6 

p e r c e n t d u r i n g t h e 1 9 6 5 - 7 9 p e r i o d , c o m p a r e d w i t h 3 3 p e r ­

c e n t in 1 9 6 5 . T o o b t a i n t h is n u m b e r o f g r a d u a t e s , s t e p s 

w o u l d h a v e t o b e t a k e n t o b u i ld a d d i t i o n a l c la s s r o o m s , t o 

a s s u r e t h a t s u f f i c ie n t n u m b e r o f t e a c h e r s a r e a v a ila b le , a n d 

t o a t t r a c t a d d i t i o n a l s t u d e n t s t o t h e t r a i n i n g p r o g r a m s . I n ­

c r e a s e s in t r a i n i n g o f t h i s m a g n i t u d e a r e n o t u n r e a l i s t ic . 

D u r i n g t h e e a r l y 1 9 6 0 ’s, t r a i n i n g in p r e e m p l o y m e n t p o s t ­

s e c o n d a r y s c h o o l i n c r e a s e d a t a m u c h f a s t e r r a t e t h a n t h a t 

i m p l i e d b y t h i s in c r e a s e .

W h a t w o u l d b e t h e s u p p ly i f p a s t t r e n d s o f e n t r y f r o m 

p r e e e m p l o y m e n t a n d t e c h n i c i a n - r e l a t e d t r a i n i n g c o n t i n u e d ? 

I f t h e s a m e p r o p o r t i o n o f 4 - y e a r c o lle g e g r a d u a t e s a n d 

d r o p o u t s c o n t i n u e t o e n t e r t e c h n i c i a n j o b s a s in t h e r e c e n t 

p a s t , t h e n u m b e r o f n e w t e c h n i c i a n s f r o m t h e s e s o u r c e s 

w o u l d i n c r e a s e a b o u t f o u r - f i f t h s b e t w e e n 1 9 6 6 a n d 1 9 7 9 a s 

r e f l e c t e d in t h e r is e in c o lle g e e n r o l l m e n t s a n d g r a d u a t e s 

p r o j e c t e d b y t h e U .S . O f f ic e o f E d u c a t i o n . O v e r t h e 

1 9 6 6 - 7 9 p e r i o d , a b o u t 1 5 0 ,0 0 0 4 - y e a r c o lle g e g r a d u a t e s 

a n d d r o p o u t s w o u l d e n t e r t e c h n i c i a n j o b s .

I f t h e t r e n d o f in c r e a s e in t e c h n i c i a n t r a i n i n g p r o g r a m s 

a s a p r o p o r t i o n o f a ll M D T A t r a i n i n g c o n t i n u e d , t h e 

n u m b e r o f t e c h n i c i a n s t r a i n e d in s u c h p r o g r a m s w o u l d i n ­

c r e a s e a b o u t t w o - f i f t h s b e t w e e n 1 9 6 6 a n d 1 9 7 9 , a n d p r o ­

v id e a b o u t 9 5 , 0 0 0 e n t r a n t s o v e r t h a t p e r i o d . T h e a n n u a l 

n u m b e r o f e n t r a n t s f r o m t h e A r m e d F o r c e s h a s r e m a i n e d 

r e la ti v e ly c o n s t a n t d u r i n g t h e 1 9 6 0 ’s, a l t h o u g h a s lig h t ris e 

is e x p e c t e d a t le a s t t h r o u g h t h e e a r l y 1 9 7 0 ’s d u e t o t h e 

i n c r e a s e in t h e s iz e o f t h e A r m e d F o r c e s r e s u l t i n g f r o m t h e 

V i e t N a m W a r. B y 1 9 7 9 , h o w e v e r , e n t r a n t s f r o m t h e A r m e d 

F o r c e s a r e p r o j e c t e d t o a p p r o x i m a t e 1 9 6 3 le v e ls . W h e n 

t h e s e f a c t o r s a r e t a k e n i n t o c o n s i d e r a t i o n , a b o u t 2 1 , 5 0 0 

p e r s o n s w o u l d e n t e r t e c h n i c i a n j o b s d u r i n g t h e 1 9 6 6 - 7 9 

p e r i o d i f t h e p a t t e r n s o f e n t r y f r o m A r m e d F o r c e s s e p a r a ­

t i o n s c o n t i n u e a s d u r i n g t h e e a r ly t o m i d - 1 9 6 0 ’s.

S e v e ra l s t u d i e s i n d i c a t e t h a t e m p l o y e r s r e d u c e t h e i r 

t r a i n i n g a c t i v it i e s a s m o r e t e c h n i c i a n s b e c o m e a v a ila b le 

f r o m p r e e m p l o y m e n t p o s t - s e c o n d a r y p r o g r a m s . T h e r e f o r e , 

i f t r a i n i n g i n p r e e m p l o y m e n t p o s t - s e c o n d a r y p r o g r a m s w ill 

e x p a n d o v e r t h e 1 9 6 6 - 7 9 p e r i o d a lo n g t h e l in e s o f r e c e n t 

y e a r s , e m p l o y e r s m a y r e d u c e s lig h tly t h e i r t e c h n i c i a n t r a i n ­

in g a c t i v it i e s . U n d e r t h e s e a s s u m p t i o n s , a b o u t 1 7 5 ,0 0 0 n e w 

t e c h n i c i a n s w o u l d c o m p l e t e e m p l o y e r t r a i n i n g p r o g r a m s 

b e t w e e n 1 9 6 6 a n d 1 9 7 9 .

H o w m a n y t e c h n i c i a n e n t r a n t s c a n b e e x p e c t e d t o 

g r a d u a t e f r o m p r e e m p l o y m e n t p o s t - s e c o n d a r y t r a i n i n g i f 

p a s t p a t t e r n s o f e n t r y f r o m t h i s s o u r c e o f s u p p l y w e r e t o

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c o n t i n u e d u r i n g t h e 1 9 6 6 - 7 9 p e r io d ? I f ( 1 ) t h e p r o ­

p o r t i o n o f h i g h s c h o o l g r a u d a t e s w h o e n r o l l i n t h e s e 

p r o g r a m s w e r e t o i n c r e a s e a s d u r i n g t h e e a r l y 1 9 6 0 ’s 

a n d ( 2 ) t h e p r o p o r t i o n o f t h o s e w h o e n t e r t e c h n i c i a n 

j o b s w e r e t o r e m a in a b o u t t h e s a m e a s d u r i n g t h e e a r l y 

1 9 6 0 ’s , a b o u t 7 5 0 , 0 0 0 n e w g r a d u a t e s w o u l d e n t e r t e c h ­

n i c i a n j o b s o v e r t h e 1 9 6 6 - 7 9 p e r i o d . A s i n d i c a t e d 

a b o v e , g r e a t e f f o r t is n e e d e d t o b u i l d n e w o r e x p a n d 

e x is ti n g t e c h n i c a l i n s t i t u t e s , j u n i o r c o lle g e s , a n d o t h e r 

p o s t - s e c o n d a r y s c h o o l s t h a t t r a i n t e c h n i c i a n s ; t o a t t r a c t 

s t u d e n t s t o t h e p r o g r a m s ; a n d t o a s s u r e a s u f f i c ie n t 

n u m b e r o f t e a c h e r s t o p r o v i d e t h e t r a i n i n g .

I n s u m m a r y , a b o u t 1 .2 m il l io n w o r k e r s w o u l d e n t e r 

t e c h n i c i a n j o b s f r o m p r e e m p l o y m e n t a n d t e c h n i c i a n - 

r e l a t e d t r a i n i n g i f p a s t t r e n d s o f e n t r y c o n t i n u e .

P r e e m p l o y m e n t --------------------------------------------------------- 1 , 0 2 0 , 0 0 0

P o s t- s e c o n d a r y p r e e m p l o y m e n t

t r a i n i n g ------------------------------------------------------------------ 7 5 0 , 0 0 0

E m p l o y e r t r a i n i n g ------------------------------------------------ 1 7 5 ,0 0 0

M D T A t r a i n i n g ----------------------------------------------------- 9 5 , 0 0 0

T e c h n i c i a n - r e l a t e d ---------------------------------------------------- 1 7 1 ,5 0 0

C o lle g e a n d u n i v e r s i t y ( 4 - y e a r )

g r a d u a t e s a n d d r o p o u t s ------------------------------------- 1 5 0 ,0 0 0

A r m e d F o r c e s t r a i n i n g --------------------------------------- 2 1 , 5 0 0

T o t a l ------------------------------------------------------------- 1 , 1 9 1 , 5 0 0

H o w e v e r , a f t e r lo s s e s r e s u l ti n g f r o m d e a t h s , r e t i r e m e n t s , 

a n d t r a n s f e r s t o o t h e r o c c u p a t i o n s , o n l y a b o u t 9 3 5 , 0 0 0 

o f t h e s e e n t r a n t s w o u l d r e m a in in t h e f ie ld in 1 9 8 0 . 

A n a d d i t i o n a l 1 2 0 , 0 0 0 t e c h n i c i a n s w o u l d h a v e t o b e 

u p g r a d e d t o o b t a i n a n e t 9 9 , 0 0 0 t e c h n i c i a n s n e e d e d 

t o m e e t m a n p o w e r n e e d s o f 1 , 0 3 4 , 0 0 0 . 1 8 > U p g r a d in g s 

o f t h is m a g n i t u d e w o u l d a p p r o x i m a t e o n l y 1 0 p e r c e n t 

o f a ll e n t r a n t s f o r t h e p e r i o d , c le a r l y a v a s t i m p r o v e ­

m e n t in t h e t e c h n i c i a n m a n p o w e r s i t u a t i o n .

P r o s p e c t iv e R e l a t i o n s B e tw e e n R e q u i r e m e n t s f o r 

a n d S u p p l y o f T e c h n i c i a n s , i f P a s t P a t t e r n s 

o f E n t r y C o n t i n u e , 1 9 6 6 - 8 0

R E Q U I R E M E N T S

T o t a l -----------------------------------------------------------------1 ,0 3 4 ,0 0 0

G r o w t h --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5 0 9 ,0 0 0

R e p la c e m e n t s : D e a th s a n d r e t i r e m e n t s ----------------- 1 5 0 ,0 0 0

T r a n s f e r s -------------------------------------------- 3 7 5 , 0 0 0

S U P P L Y

N e t e n t r a n t s --------------------------------------------------1 ,0 3 4 ,0 0 0

G r o s s e n t r a n t s ( 1 , 3 2 0 , 0 0 0 ) m in u s lo s e s 

r e s u l ti n g f r o m d e a t h s , r e t i r e m e n t s , 

a n d t r a n s f e r s ( 2 8 6 , 0 0 0 )

N e t e n t r a n t s f r o m p r e e m p l o y m e n t a n d

t e c h n i c i a n r e l a t e d t r a i n i n g -------------------------------- 9 3 5 , 0 0 0

G r o s s e n t r a n t s ( 1 , 1 9 1 , 5 0 0 ) m i n u s lo s s e s 

r e s u l ti n g f r o m d e a t h s , r e t i r e m e n t s , 

a n d t r a n s f e r s ( 2 5 6 , 5 0 0 )

N e t u p g r a d in g s r e q u i r e d ----------------------------------------- 9 9 , 0 0 0

G r o s s e n t r a n t s ( 1 2 0 , 0 0 0 ) m i n u s lo s s e s 

r e s u l ti n g f r o m d e a t h s , r e t i r e m e n t s , 

a n d t r a n s f e r s ( 2 1 , 0 0 0 )

H o w e v e r , f a v o r a b l e c o n d i t i o n s m a y n o t e x is t in a ll t h e 

v a r io u s t e c h n i c i a n s p e c ia l ti e s . S o m e s p e c ia l ti e s m a y h a v e 

s h o r t a g e s b e c a u s e e m p l o y e r s h a v e i n d i c a t e d in c r e a s in g d i f f i ­

c u l t y u p g r a d in g w o r k e r s t o t e c h n i c i a n s j o b s in c e r t a i n f i e l d s 

o f t e c h n o l o g y o r s p e c ia l iz a t i o n ( e .g ., b io - m e d i c a l e q u i p m e n t 

t e c h n o l o g y , n u c l e a r m e d i c a l t e c h n o l o g y , la s e r a n d e le c t r o - 

o p t i c a l t e c h n o l o g y , a n d m e t a ll u r g i c a l t e c h n o l o g y ) a s a 

r e s u l t o f t h e g r o w i n g c o m p l e x i t y o f i n d u s t r i a l t e c h n o l o g y 

a n d r e s e a r c h a c t i v it i e s . T h e s o u r c e s o f t r a i n i n g in t h e s e 

f ie ld s p r o b a b l y w ill n o t s u p p l y a ll t h o s e w h o a r e n e e d e d .

A n y a s s e s s m e n t o f f u t u r e s u p p l y - d e m a n d c o n d i t i o n s 

f o r t e c h n i c i a n s r e v o lv e s a r o u n d t h e e x t e n t t o w h i c h p r e e m ­

p l o y m e n t p o s t - s e c o n d a r y t r a i n i n g c a n b e e x p a n d e d . T h e 

e f f o r t s u n d e r l y i n g t h e r a p i d e x p a n s io n e x p e r i e n c e d d u r i n g 

t h e 1 9 6 0 ’s m u s t b e c o n t i n u e d t h r o u g h t h e 1 9 7 0 ’s i f f u t u r e 

m a n p o w e r n e e d s f o r t e c h n i c i a n s a r e t o b e m e t .

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C h a p t e r II

D irectio n s for F u tu re R e s e a rc h

D u r i n g t h e r e s e a r c h f o r t h is b u l l e t i n a n d o t h e r s t u d i e s 

o f t e c h n i c i a n m a n p o w e r c o n d u c t e d b y t h e B u r e a u o f L a b o r 

S t a t i s t i c s , s e v e ra l d a t a g a p s h a v e b e c o m e a p p a r e n t . M a n y o f 

t h e g a p s r e s t r i c t t h e a m o u n t o f o c c u p a t i o n a l d e ta i l t h a t c a n 

b e p r e s e n t e d in m a n p o w e r s t u d i e s ; o t h e r s a f f e c t t h e r e li a ­

b i l i t y o f t h e d a t a t h a t a re p r e s e n t e d . T h is s e c ti o n p o i n t s t o 

s o m e o f t h e s t u d i e s t h a t c a n b e c o n d u c t e d t o f ill t h e s e d a ta 

g a p s . T h e f o l lo w in g a r e a s a r e d is c u s s e d : M a n p o w e r u t i l i z a ­

t i o n , o c c u p a t i o n a l d e ta i l, r e l a t i o n s h i p o f t r a i n i n g t o o c c u p a ­

t i o n a l n e e d s , w a y s p e o p le q u a li f y f o r t e c h n i c i a n j o b s , a n d 

t h e t r a n s f e r o f t e c h n i c i a n s t o o t h e r f ie ld s o f w o r k .

M anpow er u tilization

O v e r t h e p a s t d e c a d e , s e v e ra l s t u d i e s c o n c e r n in g t h e 

u t i l i z a t i o n o f t e c h n i c i a n s h a v e b e e n c o n d u c t e d ; in m o s t o f 

t h e m , s p e c ia l e m p h a s i s w a s g iv e n t o t h e r a t i o o f t e c h n i c i a n s 

t o s c i e n t i s t s a n d e n g in e e r s .19 N e a r l y a ll s u c h s t u d i e s h a v e 

i n d i c a t e d t h a t e m p l o y e r s e x p e c t o r p r e f e r t h e r a t i o o f t e c h ­

n i c i a n s in t h e f u t u r e t o i n c r e a s e r e la ti v e t o s c i e n t i s t s a n d 

e n g in e e r s . T h is c o n c l u s i o n w a s t o b e e x p e c t e d in v ie w o f a 

r e p o r t e d s h o r t a g e , a n d t h e l o n g le a d t im e n e e d e d t o t r a i n 

s c i e n t i s t s a n d e n g in e e r s . E m p l o y e r s c o u ld s u b s t i t u t e t e c h ­

n i c i a n s t o p e r f o r m t h e m o r e r o u t i n e t a s k s p e r f o r m e d b y t h e 

m o r e h i g h ly t r a i n e d t e c h n i c a l s t a f f s . H o w e v e r , e m p l o y m e n t 

s u r v e y s c o n d u c t e d b y t h e B u r e a u o f L a b o r S t a t i s t i c s h a v e 

n o t s h o w n a n in c r e a s e in t h e u t i l i z a t i o n o f t e c h n i c i a n s r e la ­

tiv e t o s c i e n t i s t s a n d e n g in e e r s b e t w e e n 1 9 6 1 a n d 1 9 6 6 , a 

p e r i o d in w h i c h s c i e n t i s t s a n d e n g in e e r s w e r e f o r t h e m o s t 

p a r t in s h o r t s u p p l y . I n f a c t , t h e e m p l o y m e n t o f s c i e n t i s t s 

a n d e n g in e e r s h a s i n c r e a s e d s lig h tly f a s t e r t h a n t h e e m p l o y ­

m e n t o f t e c h n i c i a n s s in c e 1 9 6 1 ( 2 3 .5 p e r c e n t c o m p a r e d 

w i t h a b o u t 2 2 . 0 p e r c e n t ) . A m o n g in d iv i d u a l i n d u s t r ie s , 

h o w e v e r , t h e t r e n d v a r ie s . F o r e x a m p l e , in 1 9 6 1 , t h e r e w e r e

a b o u t 5 3 t e c h n i c i a n s p e r 1 0 0 s c i e n t i s t s a n d e n g in e e r s in t h e 

m o t o r v e h ic le i n d u s t r y . B y 1 9 6 6 , a b o u t 6 7 t e c h n i c i a n s w e r e 

e m p l o y e d f o r e v e r y 1 0 0 s c i e n t i s t s a n d e n g in e e r s . I n c o n ­

t r a s t , t h e n u m b e r o f t e c h n i c i a n s p e r 1 0 0 s c i e n t i s t s a n d e n g in e e r s in t h e c h e m i c a ls i n d u s t r y d e c l i n e d f r o m a b o u t 4 5 t o 

3 9 b e t w e e n 1 9 6 1 a n d 1 9 6 6 .

I n v ie w o f t h e r e p o r t e d s c a r c i ty o f s c i e n t i s t s a n d e n g in e e r s 2 0 a n d a c c o m p a n y i n g e c o n o m i c f a c t o r s s u c h a s h ig h 

a n d r is i n g s a la r ie s f o r s c i e n t i s t s a n d e n g in e e r s , r e s e a r c h is 

n e e d e d t o d e t e r m i n e w h y t h e e m p l o y m e n t o f t e c h n i c i a n s 

h a s g r o w n m o r e s lo w ly t h a n t h e e m p l o y m e n t o f s c i e n t i s t s 

a n d e n g in e e r s . T h e q u e s t i o n s u g g e s ts m a n y a n s w e r s . ( 1 ) 

P e r h a p s e m p l o y e r s c a n n o t u s e e f f i c i e n t l y a la r g e r n u m b e r o f 

t e c h n i c i a n s r e la ti v e t o s c i e n t i s t s a n d e n g in e e r s . T o d a y ’s 

m a n u f a c t u r i n g p r o c e s s e s a n d r e s e a r c h a n d d e v e l o p m e n t 

a c t i v it i e s m a y d e m a n d r e la ti v e ly m o r e s c i e n t i s t s a n d e n g in e e r s t h a n t e c h n i c i a n s t h a n in t h e p a s t . ( 2 ) P e r h a p s f ir m s 

h a v e “ u p g r a d e d ” t e c h n i c i a n s t o s c i e n t i s t a n d e n g in e e r j o b s , 

p a r t i c u l a r l y t o e n g in e e r i n g p o s i t i o n s . F o r e x a m p l e , t h e r e ­

p o r t e d s h o r t a g e o f e n g in e e r s d u r i n g t h e e a r l y t o m i d - 1 9 6 0 ’s 

c o u l d h a v e r e s u l t e d i n t h e p r o m o t i o n o f h i g h le v e l t e c h ­

n i c i a n s t o e n g in e e r i n g p o s i t i o n s t h a t e n ta i l a g r e a t d e a l o f 

t e c h n i c i a n le v e l w o r k . ( 3 ) P e r h a p s t e c h n i c i a n s in c r e a s in g ly 

a r e b e in g c la s s if ie d b y e m p l o y e r s a s e n g in e e r s b e c a u s e o f 

t h e g r e a t e r “ s t a t u s ” a c c o r d e d e n g in e e r s . ( 4 ) T h e g a p 

b e t w e e n t h e s u p p l y a n d d e m a n d f o r t e c h n i c i a n s m a y h a v e 

b e e n g r e a t e r t h a n t h e g a p b e t w e e n t h e s u p p l y a n d d e m a n d 

f o r s c i e n t i s t s a n d e n g in e e r s .

B e c a u s e t h e r a t i o o f t e c h n i c i a n s t o s c i e n t i s t s a n d e n g in e e r s is b a s ic t o p r o j e c t i o n s o f t e c h n i c i a n e m p l o y m e n t 

r e q u i r e m e n t s , a d e c r e a s in g r a t i o h a s a s ig n if ic a n t i m p a c t o n 

e m p l o y m e n t p r o j e c t i o n s . ( S e e a p p e n d i x A .) T h e r e f o r e , 

u t i l i z a t i o n s t u d i e s h a v e a m a j o r b e a r i n g o n f u t u r e e d u c a t i o n 

p l a n s a n d p o l ic i e s c o n c e r n i n g t e c h n i c i a n s t h a t w o u l d r e s u l t 

f r o m s t u d i e s o f s u p p l y a n d d e m a n d .

1 3

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O ccupational detail

O n e o f t h e m a j o r s h o r t c o m i n g s o f e x is ti n g t e c h n i c i a n 

m a n p o w e r s t u d i e s o n a n a t i o n a l sc a le is t h e l a c k o f o c c u p a ­

t i o n a l d e t a i l . F o r e x a m p l e , t h i s r e p o r t p r e s e n t s s t a t i s t i c s f o r 

o n l y n i n e o c c u p a t i o n a l g r o u p s , s e v e r a l o f w h i c h i n c lu d e 

m a n y j o b t i t l e s . T h e “ o t h e r e n g in e e r i n g t e c h n i c i a n ” g r o u p 

i n c l u d e s m e c h a n i c a l , a e r o n a u t i c a l , c iv il, a n d o t h e r k i n d s o f 

e n g in e e r i n g t e c h n i c i a n s , e a c h o f w h i c h h a s a n u m b e r o f 

d i f f e r e n t j o b t i t l e s . S u c h b r o a d g r o u p i n g s o f m a n y d i f f e r e n t 

t e c h n i c i a n o c c u p a t i o n s m a k e s i m p o s s i b le v a lid e s t i m a t e s o f 

t h e e m p l o y m e n t s iz e o f t h e d i f f e r e n t t e c h n i c i a n o c c u p a ­

t i o n s o r i m p r o v e m e n t o f t h e a n a l y s i s o f s u p p l y - d e m a n d 

r e l a t i o n s h i p s .

G o v e r n m e n t a g e n c ie s s h o u l d e x p a n d t h e n u m b e r o f 

o c c u p a t i o n a l c a t e g o r i e s f o r w h i c h t h e y c o ll e c t t e c h n i c i a n 

i n f o r m a t i o n . T h e B u r e a u o f L a b o r S t a t i s t i c s , t h e N a t io n a l 

S c ie n c e F o u n d a t i o n , a n d t h e B u r e a u o f t h e C e n s u s c o ll e c t 

b a s ic i n f o r m a t i o n o n t e c h n i c i a n e m p l o y m e n t b y o c c u p a t i o n 

o n a n a t i o n a l s c a le . T h e B u r e a u o f L a b o r S t a t i s t i c s in i ts 

a n n u a l s u r v e y s o f s c i e n t i f ic a n d t e c h n i c a l p e r s o n n e l in p r i ­

v a te i n d u s t r y c o ll e c t s e m p l o y m e n t s t a t i s t i c s f o r s e v e n c a t e ­

g o r ie s ( b e f o r e 1 9 6 3 , f o r f o u r d i f f e r e n t o c c u p a t i o n a l c a t e ­

g o r i e s ) ; t h e B u r e a u o f t h e C e n s u s in t h e d e c e n n ia l c e n s u s , 

f o u r c a t e g o r i e s ; a n d t h e N a t i o n a l S c ie n c e F o u n d a t i o n in 

s u r v e y s o f c o lle g e s a n d u n i v e r s it i e s a n d n o n p r o f i t o r g a n iz a ­

t i o n s , t h r e e c a t e g o r i e s .

S o m e d a t a o n o c c u p a t i o n a l d e ta i l a r e a v a ila b le f r o m 

s t u d i e s o f s p e c if ic l o c a l i t i e s . 21 T h e s e s t u d i e s o f f e r v a r io u s 

p o s s ib i l it i e s f o r c o ll e c t in g m o r e d e t a i l e d i n f o r m a t i o n o n a 

n a t i o n a l s c a le . F o r e x a m p l e , Technician Manpower in New

York State, 22 i d e n t i f i e s 1 5 d i f f e r e n t g r o u p s o f t e c h n i c i a n 

o c c u p a t i o n s .

O n e o f t h e k e y p r o b l e m s in d e v e l o p i n g m o r e d e t a i l e d 

a n d r e li a b l e o c c u p a t i o n a l e m p l o y m e n t s t a t i s t i c s is t h a t o f 

d e f i n i t i o n . T h e w o r d “ t e c h n i c i a n ” m e a n s m a n y t h in g s t o 

m a n y p e o p le . S o m e s t u d i e s d e f in e t e c h n i c i a n s m o r e 

lib e r a l l y t h a n o t h e r s a n d s t a te t h a t a n e w h ig h s c h o o l g r a d u ­

a t e m a y e n t e r a t e c h n i c i a n j o b . O t h e r s t u d i e s , i n c l u d i n g 

t h o s e o f t h e B u r e a u o f L a b o r S t a ti s t i c s , i n d ic a te t h a t t e c h ­

n i c i a n s a r e w o r k e r s w h o m u s t h a v e t r a i n i n g c o m p a r a b l e t o 

t h a t o b t a i n e d in a 2 - y e a r t e c h n i c a l i n s t i t u t e . ( S e e a p p e n d i x 

B .) W ith in t h e m a n y d e f i n i t i o n s o f “ t e c h n i c i a n , ” t h e 

w o r k e r s c o v e r e d m a y in c l u d e n o t o n l y t h o s e w h o s u p p o r t 

s c i e n t i s t s a n d e n g in e e r s , b u t a ls o a d v e r t i s i n g c o p y w r i t e r s , 

a c t u a r i e s , c r e d i t a n a l y s t s , h o t e l h o u s e k e e p e r s , l ib r a r y a s s i s t ­

a n t s , le g a l s e c r e t a r i e s , a n d P B X o p e r a t o r - r e c e p t i o n i s t s . T o 

f u r t h e r c o m p l i c a t e t h e p r o b l e m , d i f f e r e n t e m p l o y e r s u s e 

d i f f e r e n t t i t l e s f o r in d iv i d u a ls d o i n g t h e s a m e w o r k . O n t h e 

o t h e r h a n d , t h e s a m e d e s i g n a t i o n o f t e n is u s e d t o d e s c r ib e 

t h e w o r k o f t e c h n i c i a n s d o i n g d i f f e r e n t j o b s .

T o e li m in a t e t h e s e p r o b l e m s , d e f in i t e g u id e lin e s s h o u ld 

b e e s t a b l i s h e d in d e v e l o p i n g a ll s t a t i s t i c s o n t e c h n i c i a n m a n ­

p o w e r . I f g u id e l i n e s a r e n o t u s e d , t h e d a t a w ill n o t b e c o m ­

p a r a b l e , a n d a n a l y s t s w ill n o t b e a b le t o b u i l d u p o n t h e 

i n f o r m a t i o n c o l l e c t e d b y o t h e r s — a k e y r e s e a r c h o b je c tiv e . 

S u c h a s y s te m is n o w b e in g d e v e l o p e d a s p a r t o f a B u r e a u 

o f t h e B u d g e t c o m m i t t e e ’s w o r k o n d e v e l o p i n g a s t a n d a r d 

o c c u p a t i o n a l c la s s if i c a t io n s y s te m .

R elationship o f training to occupational specialty

O n e o f t h e p r i m a r y g o a ls o f a m a n p o w e r s t u d y o f t e c h ­

n i c i a n r e q u i r e m e n t s a n d s u p p l y is t o a l e r t e d u c a ti o n a l 

p l a n n e r s t o t h e s p e c if ic o c c u p a t i o n a l s p e c ia l iz a t i o n s f o r 

w h i c h t r a i n i n g p r o g r a m s s h o u l d b e e x p a n d e d , o r p e r h a p s , 

c u r t a i l e d . A l t h o u g h t h i s s t u d y a n d o t h e r c o m p r e h e n s iv e 

s t u d i e s o f t e c h n i c i a n m a n p o w e r c le a r ly i n d i c a t e t h a t e f f o r t s 

s h o u l d b e m a d e t o i n c r e a s e t h e n u m b e r o f g r a d u a t e s o f 

p r e e m p l o y m e n t p o s t - s e c o n d a r y t e c h n i c i a n t r a i n i n g p r o ­

g r a m s , t h e s p e c if ic t e c h n i c i a n s p e c ia l iz a t i o n s in w h i c h t r a i n ­

in g s h o u l d b e c o n c e n t r a t e d a r e n o t i d e n t i f i e d . T h u s , 

i m p o r t a n t i n f o r m a t i o n , s u c h a s w h e t h e r e m p h a s i s s h o u l d b e 

p l a c e d o n t r a i n i n g e le c t r i c a l a n d e l e c t r o n i c s t e c h n i c i a n s , 

d r a f t s m e n , lif e s c ie n c e t e c h n i c i a n s , o r o t h e r s p e c if ic o c c u p a ­

t i o n a l f ie l d s , c a n n o t b e f o u n d in t h e m o s t c o m p r e h e n s i v e 

n a t i o n a l m a n p o w e r s t u d i e s o n t e c h n i c i a n s .

T h o u g h g r a d u a t e s o f p o s t - s e c o n d a r y t e c h n i c i a n t r a i n i n g 

p r o g r a m s c u r r e n t l y c o n s t i t u t e le s s t h a n o n e - t h i r d o f a ll n e w 

e n t r a n t s , t h i s t y p e w o r k e r is in g r e a t e s t d e m a n d . A n y in ­

c r e a s e in t r a i n i n g a c t i v it y p r o d u c i n g a g r o w t h r a te o f g r a d ­

u a t e s o f d i f f e r e n t c u r r i c u l u m s in lin e w i t h c u r r e n t t r e n d s 

p r o b a b l y w o u l d n o t h a v e a n y ill e f f e c t s e i t h e r o n t h e 

e c o n o m y o r o n i n d iv id u a l t e c h n i c i a n w o r k e r s o v e r t h e s h o r t 

r u n . F o r e x a m p l e , a s t u d e n t ’s e m p l o y m e n t p r o s p e c t s w o u l d 

b e a f f e c t e d r e la ti v e ly l i t t l e d u r i n g t h e n e x t f e w y e a r s , r e ­

g a r d le s s o f t h e t e c h n o l o g y s t u d i e d , b e c a u s e a ll w o r k e r s 

t r a i n e d in t h e s e p r o g r a m s s h o u l d h a v e e x c e ll e n t j o b o p p o r ­

t u n i t i e s . H o w e v e r , f r o m t h e p o i n t o f v ie w o f e m p l o y e r s a n d 

o t h e r s w h o a r e l o o k i n g f o r t h e m o s t e f f i c i e n t d i s t r i b u t i o n 

o f t r a i n e d m a n p o w e r , a n y in c r e a s e in t e c h n i c i a n t r a i n i n g 

s h o u l d b e d i r e c t e d t o w a r d o c c u p a t i o n s in s h o r t e s t s u p p ly 

a n d t h o s e e x p e c t e d t o b e in g r e a t e s t d e m a n d in t h e f u t u r e .

D u r i n g t h i s s t u d y , a n a t t e m p t w a s m a d e t o d e v e lo p 

e s t i m a t e s o f t h e n e e d f o r g r a d u a t e s o f p r e e m p l o y m e n t 

p o s t - s e c o n d a r y c u r r ic u lu m s b y f ie ld o f s t u d y . H o w e v e r , 

b a s ic i n f o r m a t i o n f o r r e lia b le e s t i m a t e s w a s n o t f u l ly a v a ila b le a n d w a s im p o s s ib le t o d e v e l o p w i t h i n t h e s t a f f in g a n d 

t im e c o n f in e s o f t h e s t u d y .

T o d e v e l o p i n f o r m a t i o n o n t e c h n o l o g ic a l f ie ld s in 

w h i c h t r a i n i n g s h o u l d b e c o n c e n t r a t e d , s t a t i s t i c s a r e n e e d e d

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o n t h e p r o p o r t i o n o f g r a d u a t e s in e a c h f i e l d o f t e c h n o l o g y 

w h o e n t e r e a c h t e c h n i c i a n o c c u p a t i o n , a n d a ls o o n t h e p r o ­

p o r t i o n o f n e w e n t r a n t s in e a c h f i e l d w h o a r e g r a d u a t e s o f 

p r e e m p l o y m e n t p r o g r a m s . H a v in g t h i s t y p e o f i n f o r m a t i o n , 

a n a l y s t s c o u l d e s t i m a t e e m p l o y e r s ’ r e la ti v e n e e d s f o r g r a d ­

u a t e s b y f i e l d o f t e c h n o l o g y .

Followup studies. T o i n c r e a s e o u r k n o w l e d g e o f t h e 

t y p e o f j o b s o b t a i n e d b y g r a d u a t e s , a s t u d y s h o u l d b e d o n e 

t o f o l l o w u p t h e a c t i v it i e s o f g r a d u a t e s o f t e c h n i c i a n p r o ­

g r a m s . T h e r e s u l ts w o u l d i d e n t i f y t h e p r o p o r t i o n o f 

g r a d u a t e s w h o t a k e f u r t h e r s c h o o l in g , e n t e r m i l i t a r y 

a c t i v i t y , o r g e t j o b s . I n p a r t i c u l a r , t h e s p e c if ic o c c u p a t i o n 

o f t h o s e e n t e r i n g t h e l a b o r f o r c e w o u l d b e i d e n t i f i e d s o t h a t 

a n e s t i m a t e c o u ld b e m a d e o f t h e e x t e n t t o w h i c h n e w 

t e c h n i c i a n s w ill w o r k in t h e t e c h n i c i a n s p e c ia l iz a t i o n s in 

w h i c h t h e y h a v e b e e n t r a i n e d . 2 3 G r a d u a t e s o f p o s t ­

s e c o n d a r y p r e e m p l o y m e n t t r a i n i n g p r o g r a m s g e n e r a lly c o m ­

p l e t e o n e o f t h e f o l lo w in g 1 0 c u r r ic u lu m s : A e r o n a u t i c a l 

t e c h n o l o g y , a r c h i t e c t u r e a n d c iv il t e c h n o l o g y , e le c tr ic a l 

t e c h n o l o g y , c h e m ic a l t e c h n o l o g y , g e n e r a l e n g in e e r i n g t e c h ­

n o l o g y , i n d u s t r ia l t e c h n o l o g y , m e c h a n i c a l t e c h n o l o g y , 

m e t a ll u r g i c a l t e c h n o l o g y , a g r ic u l tu r e a n d f o r e s t r y , a n d d a t a 

p r o c e s s i n g . T h is lis t m ig h t i n d i c a t e t h a t g r a d u a t e s o f e le c ­

t r ic a l t e c h n o l o g y c u r r ic u lu m s b e c o m e e l e c t r o n i c o r e le c ­

t r i c a l t e c h n i c i a n s , a n d t h a t g r a d u a t e s o f c h e m ic a l 

t e c h n o l o g y b e c o m e c h e m ic a l t e c h n i c i a n s , e t c . H o w e v e r , 

f r o m t h e l i t t l e a v a ila b le d a t a o n g r a d u a t e s o f t h e s e p r o g r a m s 

r e p o r t e d b y in d iv i d u a l s c h o o l s , t h i s a s s u m p t io n is n o t c o r ­

r e c t . S o m e e l e c t r o n i c t e c h n o l o g y g r a d u a t e s b e c o m e 

i n d u s t r ia l t e c h n i c i a n s , a e r o n a u ti c a l t e c h n i c i a n s , o r e n t e r 

o t h e r n o n e l e c t r o n i c t e c h n i c i a n s p e c ia l iz a t i o n s ; s o m e 

b e c o m e d r a f t s m e n .

N o t a ll g r a d u a t e s o f t e c h n i c i a n t r a i n i n g p r o g r a m s w o i k 

a s t e c h n i c i a n s . S o m e c o n t i n u e t h e i r e d u c a t i o n in a d v a n c e d 

s c h o o l s o r c o lle g e s a n d t r a i n f o r h ig h e r - le v e l o c c u p a t i o n s . 

O t h e r s a c c e p t j o b s in o c c u p a t i o n s w h e r e t h e y u s e o n l y p a r t 

o r n o n e o f t h e i r t r a i n i n g . S till o t h e r s e n t e r t h e A r m e d 

F o r c e s a n d a r e t e m p o r a r i l y o u t o f t h e c iv ilia n l a b o r f o r c e . 

S o m e w o m e n g r a d u a t e s b e c o m e h o u s e w i v e s a f t e r c o m p l e t ­

in g a t e c h n i c i a n t r a i n i n g p r o g r a m a n d d o n o t e n t e r t h e l a b o r 

f o r c e .

W ays people q u a lify fo r technician jobs

A . P r e e m p l o y m e n t P o s t- S e c o n d a r y T r a i n i n g

P r e e m p l o y m e n t p o s t - s e c o n d a r y t e c h n i c i a n t r a i n i n g is 

a v a ila b le in s e v e r a l g e n e r a l t y p e s o f i n s t i t u t i o n s . T h e f i r s t 

t y p e , i n s t i t u t i o n s o f h i g h e r e d u c a t i o n , in c l u d e p u b l i c a n d 

p r i v a t e s c h o o ls c o n f e r r i n g a t le a s t t h e a s s o c i a t e o f a r t s d e ­

g re e o r i ts e q u iv a l e n t in o r g a n iz e d o c c u p a t i o n a l c u r ­

r i c u l u m s . T h e s e i n s t i t u t i o n s a r e l is te d in t h e U .S . O f f ic e o f 

E d u c a t i o n ’s D i r e c t o r y o f H ig h e r E d u c a t i o n . A s e c o n d t y p e , 

a r e a v o c a t i o n a l s c h o o l s , i n c l u d e s p u b l i c v o c a t i o n a l p r o g r a m s 

s u p p o r t e d u n d e r p r o v i s i o n s o f t h e V o c a t i o n a l E d u c a t i o n 

A c t o f 1 9 6 3 . A t h i r d t y p e i n c l u d e s s c h o o ls o f f e r i n g 4 - y e a r 

b a c h e l o r o f t e c h n o l o g y p r o g r a m s . A f o u r t h i n c l u d e s “ p r i ­

v a t e ” s c h o o ls t h a t p r o v i d e t e c h n i c i a n t r a i n i n g p r o g r a m s 

w h i c h a r e n o t i n c l u d e d in e i t h e r o f t h e f i r s t t w o t y p e s 

a b o v e . T h e f i r s t t w o t y p e s o f p r o g r a m s h a v e b e e n c le a r ly 

i d e n t i f i e d a n d p r o v i d e a m a j o r p a r t o f t h e t e c h n i c i a n t r a i n ­

i n g . 2 4 T h e l a t t e r t w o — b a c h e l o r o f t e c h n o l o g y p r o g r a m s 

a n d p r i v a t e s c h o o l s — n e e d t o b e s t u d i e d t o d e t e r m i n e t h e 

s iz e a n d t y p e o f p r o g r a m s o f f e r e d .

Bachelor of technology programs. F o u r - y e a r p r o g r a m s 

i n e n g in e e r i n g t e c h n o l o g y a r e a r e la ti v e ly r e c e n t d e v e l o p ­

m e n t , m o s t o f t h e m h a v in g b e e n e s t a b l i s h e d s in c e 1 9 5 0 . I n 

1 9 6 8 , a b o u t 7 5 i n s t i t u t i o n s o f f e r e d o n e o r m o r e b a c - 

c a l a u r a t e p r o g r a m s in e n g in e e r i n g o r i n d u s t r ia l t e c h n o l o g y 

r e l a t e d t o e n g in e e r i n g . T h e s e p r o g r a m s h a v e b e e n i d e n t i f i e d , 

a n d a n a t t e m p t m a d e t o a s s e s s t h e n e e d f o r s u c h p r o g r a m s .25

L i m i t e d c o n t a c t s b e t w e e n B L S s t a f f m e m b e r s a n d in ­

d u s t r y r e p r e s e n t a t i v e s h a v e i n d i c a t e d s o m e d i f f e r e n c e s in 

t h e w a y e m p l o y e r s u t il i z e g r a d u a t e s o f t h e b a c h e l o r o f t e c h ­

n o l o g y p r o g r a m . S o m e ti m e s , t h e g r a d u a t e s a r e h i r e d as 

t e c h n i c i a n s , a n d a t o t h e r t im e s t h e y a r e h i r e d t o f ill e n g in e e r i n g p o s i t i o n s . R e s e a r c h is n e e d e d t o d e t e r m i n e t o w h a t 

e x t e n t g r a d u a t e s o f b a c h e l o r o f t e c h n o l o g y p r o g r a m s e n t e r 

t e c h n i c i a n le v e l j o b s . A s u r v e y o f in d iv i d u a l g r a d u a t e s 

s h o u l d b e c o n d u c t e d , w h i c h w o u l d p r o v i d e i n f o r m a t i o n o n 

a ll t h e w o r k r o l e s o f t h e s e g r a d u a t e s .

Private schools. I n a d d i t i o n t o t h o s e s c h o o ls in c l u d e d 

w i t h i n t h e c a t e g o r i e s t h a t h a v e t r a d i t i o n a l l y b e e n t h o u g h t 

o f a s p r o v i d in g n e w l y t r a i n e d t e c h n i c i a n s a r e o t h e r s w h i c h 

a r e p r i m a r i ly p r i v a t e ly o p e r a t e d a n d t y p i c a l l y a w a r d c e r t i f i ­

c a t e s u p o n c o m p l e t i o n o f t h e p r o g r a m . T h e y a r e n o t l is te d 

a s i n s t i t u t i o n s o f h i g h e r e d u c a t i o n b y t h e O f f i c e o f E d u c a ­

t i o n a n d , t h e r e f o r e , d o n o t f a ll i n t o s t a t i s t i c a l c o u n t s o f 

g r a d u a t e s , e n r o l l m e n t s , a n d o t h e r d a t a c o l l e c t e d b y t h e 

O f f i c e o f E d u c a t i o n . F o r l a c k o f a b e t t e r t e r m , t h e y a re 

c a l l e d “ p r i v a t e ” s c h o o ls in t h i s r e p o r t , e v e n t h o u g h m a n y 

p r i v a t e ly o p e r a t e d s c h o o ls a r e i n s t i t u t i o n s o f h i g h e r e d u c a ­

t i o n .

N o a g e n c y — - p u b l i c o r p r i v a t e — c o ll e c t s d a t a o n t h e 

e n r o l l m e n t s a n d g r a d u a t e s o f p r i v a t e s c h o o l s . T h o u g h 

b e lie v e d t o b e la r g e , t h e t o t a l n u m b e r o f s u c h s c h o o ls is n o t 

k n o w n . T h e N a t io n a l A s s o c ia t io n o f T r a d e a n d T e c h n i c a l 

S c h o o l s , w h ic h d o e s n o t i n c l u d e a ll p r i v a t e s c h o o l s , h a s 

a b o u t 1 5 0 m e m b e r s , o n l y t w o o f w h i c h a r e l is te d a s i n s t i t u ­

t i o n s o f h i g h e r e d u c a t i o n b y t h e U .S . O f f i c e o f E d u c a t i o n . 

H o w e v e r , n o t a ll o f t h e r e m a in in g 1 4 8 s c h o o l s o f f e r t e c h ­

n i c i a n t r a i n i n g .

Digitized for FRASER 

http://fraser.stlouisfed.org/ 

Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
1 6

I d e n t i f i c a t i o n o f t h e n u m b e r o f t e c h n i c i a n s t r a i n e d in 

p r i v a t e s c h o o l s w o u l d s h e d s o m e lig h t o n a k e y a s p e c t o f 

t e c h n i c i a n s u p p l y — u p g r a d in g s . I f p r i v a t e p o s t - s e c o n d a r y 

s c h o o ls p r o v i d e a s i g n i f ic a n t s o u r c e o f n e w t e c h n i c i a n s , 

t h e n u p g r a d in g s a r e g r e a t ly o v e r - r e p r e s e n te d in t h e s u p p l y 

e s t i m a t e s p r e s e n t e d in t h i s a n d p r e v io u s t e c h n i c i a n m a n ­

p o w e r s t u d i e s b e c a u s e t h e n u m b e r o f u p g r a d in g s w a s e s t i ­

m a t e d a s t h e r e s i d u a l o f a ll o t h e r e n t r a n t s a n d t o t a l 

e n t r a n t s .

M u c h m o r e s h o u l d b e k n o w n a b o u t p r i v a t e s c h o o ls 

b e f o r e t h e i r c o n t r i b u t i o n t o t h e s u p p l y o f n e w t e c h n i c i a n s 

c a n b e a s s e s s e d . P r o g r a m s s h o u l d b e e s t a b l i s h e d t o c o ll e c t 

d a t a o n t h e n u m b e r o f f u ll- a n d p a r t - t i m e s t u d e n t s in p r i ­

v a te s c h o o l s , t h e n u m b e r o f g r a d u a t e s , t h e e m p l o y m e n t 

s t a t u s a n d f i e l d o f w o r k o f b o t h g r a d u a t e s a n d d r o p o u t s , 

t h e e m p l o y m e n t s t a t u s o f p a r t - t i m e s t u d e n t s , a n d t h e 

s o u r c e s o f s t u d e n t f i n a n c i a l a s s is ta n c e . T h e la s t t w o i te m s 

a r e i m p o r t a n t t o d e t e r m i n e t h e p o r t i o n o f s t u d e n t s in th e s e 

p r o g r a m s w h o p a r t i c i p a t e in “ c o m p a n y t r a i n i n g ” p r o g r a m s .

B . U p g r a d in g s

A n a t i o n a l s t u d y is n e e d e d t o i d e n t i f y t h e t r a i n i n g a n d 

w o r k e x p e r i e n c e in a d d i t i o n t o f o r m a l p r e e m p l o y m e n t 

p o s t - s e c o n d a r y t r a i n i n g t h a t q u a li f i e s w o r k e r s f o r t e c h ­

n i c i a n j o b s .

E s t i m a t e d u p g r a d in g s e a c h y e a r a r e s u b j e c t t o a w id e 

r a n g e o f e r r o r s b e c a u s e o f t h e m e t h o d u s e d f o r t h e i r d e v e lo p m e n t . I n 1 9 6 2 , o v e r 5 0 p e r c e n t o r a b o u t 4 5 , 0 0 0 n e w 

e n t r a n t s t o t e c h n i c i a n s o c c u p a t i o n s w e r e e s t i m a t e d t o h a v e 

b e e n u p g r a d e d f r o m t h e e x is ti n g l a b o r f o r c e , c o m p a r e d 

w i t h o n e - t h i r d o r a b o u t 2 4 , 0 0 0 in 1 9 6 5 .

P r e l im i n a r y r e s e a r c h h a s i n d i c a t e d , h o w e v e r , t h a t 

w o r k e r s w h o a r e u p g r a d e d m a y h a v e o b t a i n e d a s ig n if ic a n t 

a m o u n t o f p o s t - s e c o n d a r y t e c h n i c i a n t r a i n i n g . T h u s , m o r e

i n f o r m a t i o n s h o u l d b e k n o w n a b o u t t h e i r e d u c a t i o n a l q u a lif i c a t i o n s . O n e s t u d y 26 h a s i n d i c a t e d t h a t s o m e e m p l o y e r s 

h ir e n e a r l y o n e - h a l f o f t h e i r t e c h n i c i a n s f r o m o t h e r f ir m s , 

b u t n o t k n o w n is t h e n u m b e r w h o a r e n e w e n t r a n t s t o t h e 

t e c h n i c i a n w o r k f o r c e — w o r k e r s in o t h e r o c c u p a ti o n s 

b e in g u p g r a d e d t o t e c h n i c i a n j o b s , a n d w o r k e r s r e t u r n i n g to 

t e c h n i c i a n j o b s a f t e r “ t r y i n g o u t ” w o r k in a n o t h e r j o b . 

T h e y c o u ld b e t e c h n i c i a n s w h o o n l y c h a n g e t h e i r e m p l o y ­

m e n t a n d t h e r e f o r e , a r e n o t a d d i t i o n s t o t h e t e c h n i c i a n 

w o r k f o r c e .

Transfers to o ther fields o f w o rk

I n a d d i t i o n t o f o l l o w u p s t u d i e s o n t h e p o s t - t r a i n i n g 

w o r k a n d s t u d y a c t i v it i e s o f t e c h n i c i a n g r a d u a t e s d i r e c tl y 

a f t e r g r a d u a t i o n , m o r e r e s e a r c h s h o u l d b e u n d e r t a k e n a b o u t 

t h e e m p l o y m e n t o f g r a d u a t e s a f t e r t h e i r t e c h n i c i a n tr a i n i n g . 

T h e i n f o r m a t i o n d is c lo s e d b y f o l lo w u p s t u d i e s o n t h e p r o ­

p o r t i o n o f g r a d u a t e s w h o r e m a in in t e c h n i c i a n o c c u p a t i o n s 

f o r s e v e ra l y e a r s w o u l d b e i m p o r t a n t in d e v e l o p i n g e s t i ­

m a t e s o f t h e f u t u r e s u p p ly o f t e c h n i c i a n m a n p o w e r .

O n ly v e r y l i m i t e d d a t a a r e a v a ila b le o n t h e n u m b e r o f 

t e c h n i c i a n s w h o t r a n s f e r t o o t h e r f ie ld s o f w o r k e a c h y e a r . 

A s a r e s u l t , e s t i m a t e s o f f u t u r e r e q u i r e m e n t s a r is in g f r o m 

t h e s e t r a n s f e r s c a n b e o n l y a p p r o x i m a t i o n s . A d m i t t e d l y , 

t h e c o l l e c t i o n o f d a ta o n t e c h n i c i a n s w h o t r a n s f e r o u t o f 

t e c h n i c i a n s p e c ia l iz a t i o n s w o u l d b e v e r y d i f f i c u l t . H o w e v e r , 

a n a t t e m p t w a s m a d e in t h e P o s tc e n s a l S u r v e y o f P r o f e s ­

s io n a l a n d T e c h n i c a l P e r s o n n e l , w h i c h p r o v i d e s s o m e u s e f u l 

i n f o r m a t i o n o n t r a n s f e r s b e t w e e n 1 9 6 0 a n d 1 9 6 2 . T h is 

s t u d y h a s b e e n u s e d t o e s t i m a t e t r a n s f e r s in t h i s re - 

p o r t . S t u d i e s o f t r a n s f e r s c a n b e c o n d u c t e d in c o n n e c t i o n 

w i t h t h e 1 9 7 0 C e n s u s .

------ F O O T N O T E S-------

1 The word “technician” is used interchangeably throughout this report with “engineering and science technicians.”

2 See appendix table A-l for data on employment of technicians by occupation and industry in 1966.

3 See Reviews o f Data on Science Resources, Research, and

Development in Industry, 1966, National Science Foundation, Washington, D.C., 20550, NSF 68-5.

4 See Employment o f Scientists and Engineers in the United

States, 1950-66, prepared jointly by the National Science Foundation and the Bureau of Labor Statistics, NSF 68-30.

5 See, for example, Demand for Engineers and Technicians— 1966, Engineering Manpower Commission, New York,

N.Y., 1966.

6 Occupational Employment Statistics 1960-66 (BLS Bulletin 1579, 1968).

7 See ch. II, Directions for Future Research, for more information on the utilization of technicians.

8 The employment estimates for technicians in this study are

early year estimates because most of the surveys underlying the

estimates collected data on January employment. (See appendix B.)

Because the number of upgradings is determined by developing a

residual of total entrants minus entrants from all other sources of

training, 1965 was the latest year for which estimates of upgradings

could be developed at the time this study was prepared. A 1967

employment estimate was not available to develop estimates of

growth between 1966 and 1967 which is necessary to estimate total

entrants.

9 Dropouts from curriculums other than science or engineering because science and engineering dropouts who enter technician

jobs are counted as part of entrants from technician-related training.

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10 Because of the method of deriving the number of upgradings, the residual of total entrants and entrants from all other

sources of training (appendix B), the upgradings totals probably

include some students who have completed preemployment training

programs in private technical schools that either are not considered institutions of higher education by the U.S. Office of Education or

do not participate in Federal programs under the Vocational Educational Act of 1963. These graduates would not be included in estimates of preemployment training because they are not included in

any statistics collected on graduates. See Guide to Organized Occupational Curriculums in Higher Education, U.S. Department of

Health, Education and Welfare, Office of Education, OE-54012-62,

Circular No. 771; and Education Directory 1966-67 Pt. 3, Higher

Education, U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare,

Office of Education. 11 Graduates of preemployment training offered in 4-year

Bachelor of Technology programs are counted as entrants from

regular bachelor’s degree programs because data are lacking to specifically separate these graduates from the data on degrees granted

that are published by the U.S. Office of Education. The Engineering

Manpower Commission of the Engineers Joint Council, however, has

initiated the collection of statistics on 4-year bachelor’s degree programs in technology (Degrees in Engineering and Industrial Technology, 1967-68). See ch. II, Direction for Future Research, p. 13.

12 Data on these and all other types of training presented here

are for 1965 so that they are comparable to the latest estimates that

could be developed for upgradings.

13 The supply data do not consider new bachelor’s degree recipients who are doing technician work upon entry into professional

fields because these workers are not counted in the employment

estimates that serve as the base for the requirements projections.

14 See p. 15 for information concerning bachelor’s degree

programs in technology.

15 Graduates of training programs in 1979 will be the last

available for employment in early 1980, the target year of the

projections.

16 Estimated losses for deaths and retirements were based on

age specific separation rates developed by BLS based on the work

life experience of all workers, and a transfer rate of 3 percent a year,

primarily based on data in the Postcensal Survey o f Professional and

Technical Personnel. For an explanation and illustration of the

methods used to develop net supply estimates, see “Projections of

Manpower Supply in a Specific Occupation,” by Neal Rosenthal,

Monthly Labor Review, November 1966.

17 66,000 of the 300,000 gross entrants would be lost to employment between 1966 and 1979 because of retirements, deaths,

and transfers to other occupations.

18 21,000 of the 120,000 new entrants would be lost to employment between 1966 and 1979 because of retirements, deaths,

and transfers to other occupations.

19 See, for example, Technicians for Connecticut Industries,

State Department of Education, Hartford, Connecticut, Bulletin No.

82; Technician Manpower in New York State, New York State Department of Labor, Division of Research and Statistics, 1964;

William J. Torpey, “Needs for Technicians,” Journal o f Engineering

Education, The American Society for Engineering Education, JulyAugust 1964; and Demand for Engineers, Physical Scientists, and

Technicians— 1966, op. cit., footnote 5.

20 See, for example, the semiannual reports entitled The Job

Market for Engineers, Scientists, and Technicians, published by the

U.S. Department of Labor, Manpower Administration.

21 Most of these studies are conducted by State agencies.

Some are conducted by local school systems, colleges and universities, and private consultant firms.

22 Op. cit., footnote 19. 23 Such a study can be done on a national scale, similar to the

study of graduates of 4-year college programs in 1958 conducted by

the Bureau of Social Science Research in 1960 under the sponsorship of the National Science Foundation and published in 1963

under the title, Two Years A fter the College Degree: Work and

Further Study Patterns (NSF 63-26).

24 See ch. Ill, Technician Manpower: Requirements, Resources and Training Needs (BLS Bulletin 1512, 1966), pp. 33-42.

25 See Baccalaurate Programs in Engineering Technology: A

Study o f Their Emergency and o f Some Characteristics o f Their

Content, a background paper developed by Dr. Jesse Defore for the

information of the participants in an Inventory Conference on Engineering Technology Education, Jan. 22-23, 1968, sponsored by the

American Society of Engineering Education and supported by the National Science Foundation.

26 A Survey o f Technical Needs o f Industry and Implications

for Curriculum Development in Higher Education— 1966. Eckhard

A. Jacobsen, Northern Illinois University, De Kalb, 111.

27 See also Technician Manpower: Requirements, Resources

and Training Needs, p. 52, op. cit., footnote 24.

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Digitized for FRASER 

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
Appendix A

Statistical T a b le s

I n t h e f o l lo w in g t a b l e s , a b s o l u te f ig u r e s u s u a l ly a r e 

r o u n d e d , a n d p e r c e n ta g e s s h o w n t o o n e d e c i m a l p la c e . 

P r e s e n t a t i o n o f t h e f ig u r e s in t h i s f o r m s h o u l d n o t b e c o n ­

s t r u e d a s i n d i c a t i n g t h a t t h e y h a v e e x a c t l y t h i s d e g r e e o f 

p r e c i s i o n .

S in c e a ll t o t a l s a n d p e r c e n ta g e s w e r e c a l c u l a te d o n t h e 

b a s is o f u n r o u n d e d f ig u r e s , t h e y d o n o t a lw a y s c o r r e s p o n d 

e x a c t l y w i t h t h o s e i n d i c a t e d b y r o u n d e d f ig u r e s o n t h e 

t a b l e s .

19

Digitized for FRASER 

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
T a b l e A -1. E s t i m a t e d e m p l o y m e n t o f t e c h n i c i a n s , b y o c c u p a t i o n a n d in d u str y , 1 9 6 6

Engineering and ph ysical scien ce technicians

All

other

technicians

Industry Total

technicians

D raftsmen Total

E ngineering technicians P h ysical scien ce technicians scien ce

technicians

Total E le c ­

tronic Other Total Chem ical P h ysics M athem atics Other

All in d u str ie s ------------------------------- 886,900 272,300 419,300 299,200 183,300 115,900 120,300 60,50 0 10,600 5, 300 4 3 ,90 0 70,00 0 125,100

M i n i n g ------------------------------------------------------- 10,20 0 3, 600 3, 000 1, 700 900 800 1, 300 300 _ 1, 000 _ 3, 600

P etroleum extraction----------------------- 6, 700 3, 100 1,700 1,000 700 300 700 100 - - 600 - 1,900

Other m in in g-------------------------------------- 3, 500 500 1, 300 700 200 500 600 200 - - 400 - 1,700

Contract co n str u ctio n--------------------------- 34,600 21, 000 6,4 0 0 6, 100 5, 300 800 300 200 - 100 - - 7, 200

M a n u f a c t u r i n g ----------------------------------------- 385,700 132,500 202,300 146,900 8 9 ,60 0 57,300 55,400 34,500 4, 100 1, 700 1 5 ,1 0 0 5 ,400 45,400

O r d n a n c e --------------------------------------------- 1 9 , 3 0 0 4, 200 13,900 11, 100 8, 700 2, 400 2, 800 1, 100 600 300 800 200 1, 000

F o o d----------------------------------------------------- 4, 300 700 1,500 500 300 200 1, 000 900 - - 100 700 1,400

T e x t i l e a n d a p p a r e l -------------------------- 3, 100 500 1, 300 500 400 100 800 700 - - 100 - 1, 300

L u m b e r and f u r n i t u r e ---------------------- 6, 700 5, 200 900 800 300 500 100 100 - - - - 600

P a p e r -------------------------------------------------- 6, 100 1,200 3, 700 2, 100 400 1 ,7 0 0 1, 600 1, 200 100 - 300 100 1, 100

C hem icals ------------------------------------------ 38,300 3,700 2 4 ,4 0 0 6, 900 1, 300 5, 600 1 7 ,5 0 0 15,400 500 100 1,500 3, 600 6, 500

P etroleum refin ing--------------------------- 5, 800 700 3,500 1,900 300 1, 600 1, 600 1, 300 100 - 200 - 1,600

Rubber------------------------------------------------- 5, 000 1, 300 2, 800 1,400 200 1, 200 1,400 1, 100 100 - 200 - 900

Stone, clay, and g l a s s -------------------- 5, 600 2,400 2, 100 1 ,4 0 0 400 1, 000 700 500 - - 200 - 1,000

P r i m a r y m e t a l s --------------------------------- 17,600 4, 700 9, 000 4, 300 1,800 2, 500 4, 700 1,200 - - 3, 500 100 3,900

Fabricated m e t a ls ---------------------------- 24,700 16,600 6, 300 5, 000 900 4 , 100 1, 300 500 100 100 600 - 1,600

M a c h in e ry------------------------------------------ 67,400 35,600 24,700 20,800 11,600 9, 200 3, 900 1, 700 300 300 1 ,6 0 0 100 7, 000

E lectrical eq u ip m en t ----------------------- 100,900 27,600 64,100 55,400 4 6 ,60 0 8, 800 8, 700 3, 700 1,400 500 3, 100 200 9, 000

Motor vehicles ---------------------------------- 15,700 6, 100 8 ,6 0 0 7, 100 100 7, 000 1,500 600 100 100 700 - 1,000

A ir c r a ft ---------------------------------------------- 34,400 9,900 21,600 18,100 9, 000 9, 100 3, 500 1, 300 4 0 0 300 1, 500 100 2, 800

Other transportation equipm ent — 6, 200 4, 500 1,700 1,400 1,200 200 300 100 - - 200 - 400

P rofession al and scientific

in stru m en t --------------------------------------- 20,200 6, 000 10, 000 7, 000 5, 600 1,400 3, 000 2, 200 300 500 300 3, 800

M iscellaneous m a n u factu rin g-------- 4, 400 1,600 2, 200 1, 200 500 700 1, 000 900 100 - -

100 500

Transportation, com m unication,

and p u b l i c u t i l i t i e s ------------------------------ 5 9 , 0 0 0 9, 700 40, 100 3 8 ,0 0 0 2 6 ,8 0 0 1 1 ,20 0 2, 100 800 200 400 700 9,200

Railroads ------------------------------------------- 4, 700 1,800 1,500 1, 300 700 600 200 200 - - - - 1,400

Other tran sp ortation------------------------ 2, 800 400 1,200 1, 100 1, 100 - 100 - - - 100 - 1,200

T e l e c o m m u n i c a t i o n s------------------------ 20,800 1, 100 18,300 17,700 9 ,800 7, 900 600 - 200 300 100 - 1,400

Radio and t e le v is io n ------------------------ 10, 900 - 9, 300 9, 300 9, 300 - - - - - - - 1,600

Public utilities ---------------------------------- 19,800 6,400 9,800 8, 600 5 ,900 2, 700 1,200 600 - 100 500 - 3, 600

Other industries ------------------------------------ 200,700 85,000 52,700 35,900 29,900 6, 000 17,000 8 ,4 0 0 2, 200 1, 600 4 , 8 0 0 25,700 37,400

M iscellaneous b u siness

s e r v i c e s ------------------------------------------- 39,900 10, 800 2 2 ,4 0 0 1 1 ,5 0 0 1 0 ,2 0 0 1, 300 10,900 5, 200 1,600 700 3,400 800 5, 900

M edical and dental lab oratories — 18,500 - - - - - - - - - - 16,800 1,700

Nonprofit in stitu tion s----------------------- 6, 500 600 2,400 900 300 600 1,500 700 300 200 300 3, 100 400

E ngineering and architectural

s e r v i c e s ------------------------------------------- 97,800 68, 100 8, 500 7, 600 4, 000 3, 600 900 300 100 100 400 100 21,100

Other nonm anufacturing----------------- 38,000 5,500 19,400 15, 900 1 5 ,40 0 500 3, 700 2, 200 200 600 700 4, 900 8, 300

G o v e r n m e n t --------------------------------------------- 164,900 19, 100 107, 000 68,500 28,90 0 39,600 3 8 ,5 0 0 1 3 ,5 0 0 2, 900 1, 000 21, 100 19,500 19,000

F e d e r a l ------------------------------------------------ 83,800 3, 900 63, 500 33,6 0 0 17,700 15,900 29,900 9, 200 2, 900 800 17,0 0 0 1 4 ,5 0 0 1, 600

S tate----------------------------------------------------- 56,500 6, 900 34,900 27,500 10,100 17,400 7 ,400 3,400 - 200 3,800 4, 000 10, 700

L o c a l ---------------------------------------------------- 24,600 8, 300 8, 600 7 ,4 0 0 1, 100 6, 300 1 ,2 0 0 900 - -

300 1,000 6, 700

Colleges and u n iv e r s itie s -------------------- 31,800 1,400 7,800 2, 100 1,900 200 5 ,700 2, 800 1,200 500 1,200 19,300 3, 300

NOTE: B eca u se of rounding, sum s of individual item s may not equal totals.

Digitized for FRASER 

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
T a b l e A - 2 . P e r c e n t d istrib u tion o f e s t i m a t e d e m p l o y m e n t o f t e c h n i c i a n s , b y o c c u p a t i o n a n d in d u str y , 1 9 6 6

Engineering and ph ysical scien ce technicians

Life

science

technicians

All

other

technicians

Industry Total

technicians

Draftsmen Total

E ngineering technicians P h ysical scien ce technicians

Total E le c ­

tronics Other Total Chem ical P h ysics M athem atics Other

All in d u str ie s ------------------------------- 100. 0 100. 0 100. 0 100. 0 100. 0 100. 0 100. 0 100. 0 100. 0 100. 0 100. 0 100. 0 100. 0

M in in g ------------------------------------------------------- 1. 2 1. 3 0. 7 0. 6 0. 5 0. 7 1. 1 0. 5 . _

2. 3 _

2. 9

P e t r o l e u m e x t r a c t i o n ----------------------- . 8 1. 1 . 4 . 3 . 4 . 3 . 6 . 2 - - 1. 4 - 1. 5

Other m in in g-------------------------------------- . 4 . 2 . 3 . 2 . 1 . 4 . 5 . 3 - - . 9 *

1.4

C o n t r a c t c o n s t r u c t i o n --------------------------- 3. 9 7. 7 1. 5 2. 0 2. 9 . 7 . 2 . 3 - 1. 9 - -5. 8

M a n u f a c t u r i n g ----------------------------------------- 4 3 . 5 4 8 . 7 4 8 . 2 49. 1 48. 9 49. 4 46. 1 57. 0 38. 7 32. 1 34. 4 7. 9 36. 3

O r d n a n c e --------------------------------------------- 2. 2 1. 5 3. 3 3. 7 4. 7 2. 1 2. 3 1. 8 5. 7 5. 7 1. 8 . 3 . 8

F o o d----------------------------------------------------- . 5 . 3 . 4 . 2 . 2 . 2 . 8 1.5 - - . 2 1. 0 1. 1

T e x t i l e an d a p p a r e l -------------------------- . 3 . 2 . 3 . 2 . 2 . 1 . 7 1. 2 - - 2. 3 - 1. 0

Lum ber and furniture --------------------- . 8 1. 9 . 2 . 3 . 2 . 4 . 1 . 2 - - - - . 5

Paper -------------------------------------------------- . 7 . 4 . 9 . 7 . 2 1. 5 1. 3 2. 0 . 9 - . 7 . 1 . 9

C h e m ic a ls ------------------------------------------ 4. 3 1.4 5. 8 2. 3 . 7 4. 8 14. 5 25. 5 4. 7 1.9 3. 4 5. 1 5. 2

P etroleum refin ing--------------------------- . 7 . 3 . 8 . 6 . 2 1.4 1.3 2. 1 . 9 - . 5 - 1. 3

Rubber------------------------------------------------- . 6 . 5 . 7 . 5 . 1 1. 0 1. 2 1. 8 . 9 - . 5 - . 7

Stone, clay, and g l a s s -------------------- . 6 . 9 . 5 . 5 . 2 . 9 . 6 . 8 - - . 5 - . 8

P rim ary m a te ls -------------------------------- 2. 0 1. 7 2. 1 1.4 1. 0 2. 2 3. 9 2. 0 - - 8. 0 . 1 3. 1

F abricated m e t a ls ---------------------------- 2. 8 6. 1 1. 5 1. 7 . 5 3. 5 1. 1 . 8 .9 1.9 1.4 - 1. 3

M a c h in e ry------------------------------------------ 7. 6 13. 1 5.9 7. 0 6. 3 7. 9 3. 2 2. 8 2. 8 5. 7 3. 6 . 1 5. 6

E l e c t r i c a l e q u i p m e n t ----------------------- 11.4 10. 1 15. 3 18. 5 25. 4 7. 6 7. 2 6. 1 3. 2 9 .4 7. 1 . 3 7. 2

M o t o r v e h i c l e s ---------------------------------- 1. 8 2. 2 2. 1 2. 3 . 1 6. 0 1. 2 1.0 . 9 1. 9 1. 6 - . 8

A ir c r a ft ---------------------------------------------- 3. 9 3. 6 5. 2 6. 0 4. 9 7. 9 2. 9 2. 1 3. 8 5. 7 3. 4 . 1 2. 2

O t h e r t r a n s p o r t a t i o n e q u i p m e n t — . 7 1. 7 . 4 . 5 . 7 . 2 . 2 . 2 - - . 5 - . 3

P rofession al and scientific

instrum ents ------------------------------------ 2. 3 2. 2 2. 4 2. 3 3. 1 1. 2 2. 5 3. 6 3. 8 . 1. 1 . 4 3. 0

M iscellaneou s m a nufacturin g------- . 5 . 6 . 5 . 4 . 3 . 6 . 8 1. 5 . 9 - -

. 1 . 4

Transportation, com m unication,

and p u b l i c u t i l i t i e s ------------------------------ 6. 7 3. 6 9. 6 12. 7 14. 6 9. 7 1. 7 1. 3 1. 9 7. 5 1. 6 7. 4

Railroads ------------------------------------------- . 5 . 7 . 4 . 4 . 4 . 5 . 2 . 3 - - - - 1. 1

Other tran sp ortation------------------------ . 3 . 1 . 3 . 4 . 6 - . 1 - - - . 2 - 1. 0

T eleco m m u n ication s------------------------ 2. 3 . 4 4. 4 5 .9 5. 3 6. 8 . 5 - 1.9 5. 7 . 2 - 1. 1

Radio and te le v is io n ------------------------ 1. 2 - 2. 2 3. 1 5. 1 - - - - - - - 1. 3

P u b l i c u t i l i t i e s ---------------------------------- 2. 2 2. 4 2. 3 2. 9 3. 2 2. 3 1. 0 1. 0 - 1. 9 1. 1 - 2. 9

Other industries ------------------------------------ 22. 6 31. 2 12. 6 12. 0 16. 3 5. 2 14. 1 13. 9 20. 8 30. 2 10. 9 36. 7 29. 9

M iscellaenou s bu siness

s e r v i c e s ------------------------------------------- 4. 5 4. 0 5. 3 3. 8 5. 6 1. 1 9. 1 8. 6 15. 1 13. 2 7. 7 1. 1 4. 7

M edical and dental lab oratories — 2. 1 - - - - - - - - - - 24. 0 1. 4

Nonprofit organ ization s------------------ . 7 . 2 . 6 . 3 . 2 . 5 1. 2 1. 2 2. 8 3. 8 . 7 4. 4 . 3

E ngineering and architectural

s e r v i c e s ------------------------------------------- 11. 0 25. 0 2. 0 2. 5 2. 2 3. 1 . 7 . 5 . 9 1. 9 . 9 . 1 16. 9

Other nonm anufacturing----------------- 4. 3 2. 0 4. 6 5. 3 8. 4 . 4 3. 1 3. 6 1.9 11. 3 1. 6 7. 0 6. 6

G o v e r n m e n t --------------------------------------------- 18. 6 7. 0 25. 5 22. 9 15. 8 34. 2 32. 0 22. 3 27. 4 18. 9 48. 1 27. 9 15. 2

F e d e r a l ----- ------------------------------------- 9 .4 1.4 15. 1 11. 2 9. 7 13. 7 24. 9 15. 2 2 7 .4 15. 1 38. 7 20. 7 1. 3

State----------------------------------------------------- 6 .4 2. 5 8. 3 9. 2 5. 5 15. 0 6. 2 5. 6 - 3. 8 8. 7 20. 0 8. 6

L o c a l ---------------------------------------------------- 2. 8 3. 0 2. 1 2. 5 . 6 5 .4 1. 0 1. 5 - -

. 7 1.4 5. 4

C olleges and u n iv e r s itie s -------------------- 3. 6 . 5 1. 9 . 7 1. 0 . 2 4. 7 4. 6 11. 3 9 .4 2. 7 27. 6 2. 6

NOTE: B eca u se of rounding, sum s of individual item s m ay not equal totals.

Digitized for FRASER 

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
T a b l e A - 3 . P r o j e c t e d 1 9 8 0 e m p l o y m e n t r e q u i r e m e n t s fo r t e c h n i c i a n s , b y o c c u p a t i o n a n d in d u str y !o

Engineering and ph ysical scien ce technicians

Life

scien ce

technicians

All

other

technicians

Industry Total

technicians

D raftsm en Total E ngineering P h ysical scien ce technicians

technicians Total Chem ical P h ysics M athem atics Other

A l l i n d u s t r i e s ------------------------------------------------ 1 . 3 9 5 . 7 0 0 434.300 646.800 453.8 00 193,000 9 6 .50 0 20.700 10.100 65.700 108.900 205.800

M i n i n g ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 10,800 3,700 3,300 1,800 1,500 400 _ . 1, 100 3,800

P etro leu m extraction--------------------------------------- 6,800 3, 200 1 ,7 0 0 1, 000 700 100 - - 600 - 1,900

Other m in in g------------------------------------------------------ 4, 000 500 1,600 800 800 300 - - 500 - 1,900

C o n t r a c t c o n s t r u c t i o n -------------------------------------------- 50,900 30,900 9 ,5 0 0 9, 000 500 400 - 100 - - 10,600

Manufacturing --------------------------------------------------------- 602,800 210,900 313,700 230,500 83,20 0 50,90 0 6, 500 3, 100 22,700 7, 900 70, 300

O rdnance------------------------------------------------------------- 22,600 4,600 16,500 12,000 4, 500 2, 000 1, 000 500 1 ,0 0 0 300 1,200

F o o d ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 5 , 7 0 0 800 1 , 9 0 0 6 0 0 1, 300 1, 200 - - 100 1, 100 1,900

T extile and a p p a r e l ------------------------------------------ 4, 000 600 1,700 600 1, 100 1,000 - - 100 - 1,700

Lum ber and fu r n itu r e-------------------------------------- 9,600 7,400 1, 300 1, 100 200 200 - - - - 900

P a p e r ------------------------------------------------------------------- 9, 300 1,800 5 ,600 3, 100 2, 500 1,800 200 - 500 200 1,700

C h e m i c a l s ----------------------------------------------------------- 5 4 , 0 0 0 5,200 34,400 9, 600 24,800 2 2 ,00 0 600 100 2, 100 5, 100 9, 300

P etro leu m refin ing------------------------------------------- 6 ,2 0 0 800 3 ,7 0 0 2, 100 1, 600 1, 300 100 - 200 - 1,700

R u b b e r ------------------------------------------------------------------ 7,600 2, 000 4, 200 2, 200 2, 000 1,600 100 - 300 - 1,400

S t o n e , c l a y , an d g l a s s ------------------------------------- 8 ,400 3,800 32,100 2, 200 900 600 - - 300 - 1,500

P rim ary m e t a ls ------------------------------------------------- 23,1 0 0 6, 100 11,800 5 ,6 0 0 6, 200 1,500 - - 4 ,7 0 0 - 5,200

F a b r i c a t e d m e t a l s --------------------------------------------- 3 5 , 2 0 0 2 3 , 6 0 0 9, 300 7, 100 2 ,200 900 200 200 900 - 2, 300

M a c h i n e r y ----------------------------------------------------------- 125,700 66,300 4 6 ,1 0 0 38,800 7, 300 3, 000 600 700 3, 000 200 13, 100

E lectrical eq u ip m en t --------------------------------------- 175,500 48,100 111,500 96,70 0 14,800 6 ,400 2, 200 800 5 ,400 300 15,600

M otor vehicles -------------------------------------------------- 19, 600 7,600 10,800 8, 800 2, 000 800 200 100 900 - 1,200

A i r c r a f t --------------------------------------------------------------- 47,000 13,500 29,500 24,60 0 4 ,9 0 0 1,600 600 600 2, 100 100 3,900

Other transportation eq u ip m en t -------------------- 9,500 6,500 2 ,400 2, 000 400 100 - - 300 - 600

P rofession al and scientific

instrum ents ----------------------------------------------------- 34,10 0 10, 100 17,000 11,800 5, 200 3 ,700 600 100 800 600 6,400

M iscellaneou s m a n u factu rin g------------------------ 5,700 2, 100 2 ,9 0 0 1,600 1, 300 1,200 100 - - - 700

Transportation, com m unication,

and public utilities ---------------------------------------------- 80, 000 11,600 56,80 0 54,20 0 2 ,600 900 - 800 900 - 11,600

R a i l r o a d s ------------------------------------------------------------ 4, 20 0 1,600 1,400 1,200 200 200 - _ - 1,200

O t h e r t r a n s p o r t a t i o n ----------------------------------------- 4, 000 600 1,700 1,600 100 - - - 100 - 1,700

T e l e c o m m u n i c a t i o n s ----------------------------------------- 33, 100 1,800 29,100 28,30 0 800 - - 600 200 - 2, 200

R a d io an d t e l e v i s i o n ----------------------------------------- 15,000 - 12,800 12,800 - - - _ _ - 2,200

P u b l i c u t i l i t i e s ---------------------------------------------------- 23,700 7,600 11,800 10,300 1,500 700 - 200 600 -

4, 300

Other in dustries ----------------------------------------------------- 342, 000 146,500 8 3 ,40 0 54,40 0 29,00 0 14,800 3, 800 2, 800 7, 600 38,900 73,200

M iscellaneous bu siness ser v ice s ----------------- 60,900 15,500 34,600 16,500 18,100 8, 900 2 , 7 0 0 1 ,2 0 0 5, 300 1, 600 9,200

M edical and dental la b o r a to r ie s -------------------- 26,800 - - - - - - - - 24,400 2,400

N o n p r o f i t i n s t i t u t i o n s ---------------------------------------- 13, 000 1, 300 4 ,7 0 0 1 ,9 0 0 2 ,8 0 0 1, 100 500 600 600 6, 200 800

E ngineering and architectural s e r v i c e s ------ 186,500 122,000 15,500 13,600 1,900 700 300 200 700 200 48,800

Other nonm anufacturing---------------------------------- 54,800 7,700 28,600 22,40 0 6, 200 4 , 100 300 800 1, 000 6, 500 12, 000

G o v er n m e n t ------------------------------------------------------------- 250,700 28,600 161,200 100,700 60,50 0 22,10 0 5, 000 2, 100 31,300 30,500 30,400

F e d e r a l ---------------------------------------------------------------- 122, 000 5,400 92,40 0 4 6 ,20 0 4 6 ,20 0 14,800 5, 000 1,600 24,800 21,900 2, 300

S t a t e ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 92,500 11, 300 56,000 4 3 ,90 0 12,100 5, 600 - 400 6, 100 7, 000 18,200

L o c a l -------------------------------------------------------------------- 36,200 11,900 12,800 10,600 2, 200 1,700 - 100 4 0 0 1, 600 9 , 9 0 0

C o l l e g e s an d u n i v e r s i t i e s ------------------------------------- 5 8 , 5 0 0 2, 100 1 8 , 9 0 0 3, 20 0 15,700 7, 000 5 , 4 0 0 1, 200 2, 100 3 1 ,6 0 0 5, 900

NOTE: B eca u se of rounding, sum s of individual item s may not equal totals.

Digitized for FRASER 

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
T a b l e A - 4 . P e r c e n t d istr ib u tio n o f p r o j e c t e d 1 9 8 0 e m p l o y m e n t r e q u i r e m e n t s fo r t e c h n i c i a n s , b y o c c u p a t i o n a n d

in d u s tr y

Engineering and physical scien ce technicians

Life

scien ce

technicians

All

oth e r

technicians

Industry Total

technicians

D raftsmen Total Engineering P h ysical scien ce technicians

technicians Total C hem ical P h ysics M athem atics Other

All in d u str ie s ----------------------------------------------- 100. 0 100. 0 100. 0 100. 0 100. 0 100. 0 100. 0 100. 0 100. 0 100. 0 100. 0

M i n i n g ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 0. 8 0.9 0. 5 0 .4 0. 8 0 .4 _

1. 7 _

1.8

P etro leu m extraction--------------------------------------- . 5 . 7 . 3 . 2 . 4 . 1 - - . 9 - . 9

Other m in in g------------------------------------------------------ . 3 . 1 . 2 . 2 . 4 . 3 - - . 8 - . 9

Contract c o n str u ctio n------------------------------------------- 3. 6 7. 1 1. 5 2. 0 . 3 . 4 - 1. 0 - -

5. 2

M a n u f a c t u r i n g --------------------------------------------------------- 43. 2 48. 6 48. 5 50. 8 43. 1 52. 7 3 1 .4 30. 7 34. 6 7. 3 34. 2

O r d n a n c e ------------------------------------------------------------- 1. 6 1. 1 2. 6 2. 6 2. 3 2. 1 4. 8 5. 0 1. 5 . 3 . 6

F ood--------------------------------------------------------------------- . 4 . 3 . 1 . 7 1. 2 - - . 2 1. 0 . 9

T e x t i l e an d a p p a r e l ------------------------------------------ . 3 . 1 . 3 . 1 . 6 1 . 0 - - . 2 - . 8

L u m b e r a n d f u r n i t u r e -------------------------------------- . 7 1 . 7 . 2 . 2 . 1 . 2 - - - - . 4

P a p e r ------------------------------------------------------------------- . 7 . 4 . 9 . 7 1. 3 1. 9 1. 0 - . 8 . 2 . 8

C hem icals ---------------------------------------------------------- 3.9 1.2 5. 3 2. 1 12. 8 22. 8 2. 9 1. 0 3. 2 4. 7 4. 5

P etroleum refin ing------------------------------------------- . 4 . 2 . 6 . 5 . 8 1. 3 . 5 - . 3 - . 8

R ubber----------------------------------------------------------------- . 5 . 5 . 6 . 5 1. 0 1. 7 . 5 - . 5 - . 7

Stone, clay, and glass ------------------------------------ . 6 . 9 . 5 . 5 . 5 . 6 - - . 5 - . 7

P r i m a r y m e t a l s ------------------------------------------------- 1.7 1.4 1 .8 1. 2 3. 2 1. 6 - - 7. 2 - 2. 5

Fabricated m e t a ls -------------------------------------------- 2. 5 5 .4 1.4 1. 6 1. 1 . 9 1. 0 2. 0 1.4 - 1. 1

M a c h in e ry---------------------------------------------------------- 9. 0 15. 3 7. 1 8. 6 3. 8 3. 1 2. 9 6 .9 4. 6 . 2 6 .4

E lectrical e q u ip m en t --------------------------------------- 12. 6 11. 1 17. 2 21 .3 7. 7 6. 6 10. 6 7. 9 8. 2 . 3 7. 6

Motor veh icles -------------------------------------------------- 1.4 1. 7 1. 7 1.9 1. 0 . 8 1 . 0 1. 0 1. 3 - . 6

A i r c r a f t --------------------------------------------------------------- 3.4 3. 1 4. 6 5. 4 2. 5 1. 7 2. 9 5. 9 3. 2 . 1 1. 9

Other transportation eq u ip m en t --------------------

P rofession al and scientific

. 7 1. 5 . 4 . 4 . 2 . 1 " “

. 5 " . 3

i n s t r u m e n t s ----------------------------------------------------- 2. 4 2. 3 2. 6 2. 6 2. 7 3. 8 2. 9 1. 0 1. 2 . 6 3. 1

M iscellaneou s m a nufacturin g------------------------ . 4 . 5 . 4 . 4 . 7 1. 2 1. 0 - - -

. 3

T ransportation, com m unication,

an d p u b l i c u t i l i t i e s ---------------------------------------------- 5. 7 2. 7 8. 8 11.9 1. 3 . 9 - 7. 9 1.4 - 5. 6

R a i l r o a d s ------------------------------------------------------------ . 3 . 4 . 2 . 3 - . 2 - - - - . 6

Other tran sp ortation---------------------------------------- . 3 . 1 . 3 . 4 . 1 - - . 2 - . 8

T eleco m m u n ication s---------------------------------------- 2. 4 . 4 4 . 5 6. 2 . 1 - - 5. 9 . 3 - 1. 1

Radio and t e le v is io n ---------------------------------------- 1. 1 - 2. 0 2. 8 . 4 - - - - - 1. 1

Public utilities -------------------------------------------------- 1.7 1. 7 1. 8 2. 3 . 8 . 7 -

2. 0 . 9 -2. 1

O t h e r i n d u s t r i e s ----------------------------------------------------- 24. 5 33. 7 12. 9 12. 0 15. 0 15. 3 18.4 27. 7 11. 6 35. 7 35. 6

M iscellaneou s bu siness ser v ice s ----------------- 4 .4 3. 6 5. 3 3. 6 9 .4 9. 2 13. 0 11.9 8. 1 1. 5 4. 5

M e d i c a l a n d d e n t a l l a b o r a t o r i e s -------------------- 1.9 - - - - - - - - 22.4 1. 2

N o n p r o f i t i n s t i t u t i o n s --------------------------------------- . 9 . 3 . 7 . 4 1.5 1. 1 2. 4 5 . 9 . 9 5. 7 . 4

E ngineering and architectural s e r v ic e s ------ 13.4 2. 8 2 .4 3. 0 1. 0 . 7 1.4 2. 0 1. 1 . 2 23. 7

Other nonm anufacturing--------------------------------- 3.9 1. 8 4 .4 4. 9 3. 2 4. 2 1.4 7 .9 1. 5 6. 0 5. 8

G o v e r n m e n t ------------------------------------------------------------- 18. 0 6. 6 24. 9 22. 2 31. 3 22. 9 24. 2 20. 8 47. 6 28. 0 14. 8

F e d e r a l ---------------------------------------------------------------- 8. 7 1. 2 14. 3 10. 2 23. 9 15. 3 24. 2 15. 8 37. 7 20. 1 1. 1

S t a t e T-_ ____ ,, 6. 6 2. 6 8. 7 9. 7 6. 3 5. 8 - 4‘. 0 9. 3 6 .4 8. 8

L o c a l -------------------------------------------------------------------- 2. 6 2. 7 2. 0 2. 3 1. 1 1. 8 -

1. 0 . 6 1. 5 4. 8

C olleges and un iversities ------------------------------------ 4. 2 . 5 2 .9 . 7 8. 1 7. 3 26. 1 11.9 3. 2 29. 0 2 .9

NOTE: B eca u se of rounding, sum s of individual item s m ay not equal totals.

Digitized for FRASER 

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
T a b l e A - 5 . R a tio o f te c h n ic ia n to s c i e n c e a n d e n g i n e e r i n g e m p l o y m e n t , b y in d u stry, 1 9 6 6 io

Industry

All in d u str ie s -----------------------------------------

M in in g -----------------------------------------------------------------

P etroleum extraction---------------------------------

O t h e r m i n i n g -----------------------------------------------

Contract co n str u ctio n-------------------------------------

M a n u f a c t u r i n g ---------------------------------------------------

O r d n a n c e -------------------------------------------------------

F ood---------------------------------------------------------------

T e x t i l e an d a p p a r e l ------------------------------------

Lum ber and furniture -------------------------------

P a p e r -------------------------------------------------------------

C hem icals ----------------------------------------------------

P etroleum refin ing-------------------------------------

Rubber-----------------------------------------------------------

Stone, clay, and glass ------------------------------

P rim ary m e t a ls ------------------------------------------

F abricated m e t a ls --------------------------------------

M a c h in e ry----------------------------------------------------

E l e c t r i c a l e q u i p m e n t ---------------------------------

M o t o r v e h i c l e s --------------------------------------------

A ir c r a ft --------------------------------------------------------

Other transportation eq u ip m en t -------------

P rofession al and scientific instrum ents

M i s c e l l a n e o u s m a n u f a c t u r i n g ------------------

Average num ber of

technicians per 100

scien tists and

enein eers

Industry

A verage num ber of

technicians per 100

scien tists and

enein eers

63 T ransportation, com m unication, and

35

30

48

p u b li c u t i l i t i e s ------------------------------------------------------------- 108

R a i l r o a d s ------------------------------------------------------------------ 104

Other tran sp ortation----------------------- -------------------- 52

T eleco m m u n ica tio n s ---------------------------------------------- 171

67 Radio and te le v is io n --------------------------------------------- 214

58

32

36

Public u tilitie s -------------------------------------------------------- 73

48 Other in d u s tr ie s ----------------------------------------- --------------- 97

168 M isc ella n e o u s b u s in e s s s e r v i c e s ----------------------- 70

42 M e d i c a l an d d e n t a l l a b o r a t o r i e s -------------------------- 1, 321

39 Nonprofit in stitu tion s--------------------------------------------- 44

42 Engineering and architectual

45 s e r v i c e s ------------------------------------------------------------------ 105

53

64

82

Other nonm anufacturing--------- --------------------------- 91

83

70

67

G o v er n m e n t ------------------------------------------------------------------- 75

F e d e r a l ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 63

S t a t e ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 109

113 L o c a l -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 73

57

66 C olleges and un iversities ------------------------------------------ 18

Digitized for FRASER 

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
Appendix B

C o v e ra g e, D efinitions, and P rojection M e th o d s

Coverage and definitions

T h e d e f i n i t i o n o f t e c h n i c i a n s u s e d in t h i s r e p o r t is t h e 

s a m e u s e d i n t h e p e r io d i c s u r v e y s o f s c i e n t i f ic a n d t e c h n i c a l 

p e r s o n n e l i n p r i v a t e i n d u s t r y , a n d S t a t e a n d l o c a l g o v e r n ­

m e n t s c o n d u c t e d b y t h e B u r e a u o f L a b o r S t a t i s t i c s .

T e c h n i c i a n s a r e : P e r s o n s a c t u a l l y e n g a g e d i n t e c h n i c a l 

w o r k a t a le v e l w h i c h r e q u ir e s k n o w l e d g e o f p h y s i c a l , 

l if e , e n g in e e r i n g , o r m a t h e m a t i c a l s c ie n c e s c o m p a r a b l e 

t o k n o w l e d g e a c q u i r e d t h r o u g h t e c h n i c a l i n s t i t u t e , 

j u n i o r c o lle g e , o r o t h e r f o r m a l p o s t - h i g h s c h o o l t r a i n i n g 

le s s e x te n s i v e t h a n 4 - y e a r c o lle g e t r a i n i n g , o r t h r o u g h 

e q u iv a l e n t o n - t h e - j o b t r a i n i n g o r e x p e r i e n c e . A ll p e r ­

s o n s w o r k i n g a s d r a f t s m e n a n d s u r v e y o r s a r e c o n ­

s i d e r e d t o b e t e c h n i c i a n s .

E x c l u d e d f r o m c o v e r a g e a r e : ( 1 ) T e c h n i c i a n s w h o

w o r k w i t h p h y s i c ia n s , d e n t i s t s , a n d o t h e r p r a c t i t i o n e r s in 

t h e h e a l t h f ie ld s w h o a r e e n g a g e d in p a t i e n t c a r e ; ( 2 ) 

w o r k e r s w h o fa ll in t h e “ s p e c t r u m o f m id d l e le v e l m a n ­

p o w e r ” in b u s i n e s s — r e l a t e d t e c h n o l o g i e s a n d p u b l ic s e rv ­

ic e s s u c h a s l ib r a r y a s s i s t a n ts a n d le g a l s e c r e t a r i e s ; a n d ( 3 ) 

w o r k e r s c la s s if ie d a s c r a f t s m e n s u c h a s i n s t r u m e n t r e p a i r ­

m e n a n d m e c h a n i c s .

Methodology

Estimates of 1966 employment. T h e e s t i m a t e s o f t o t a l 

t e c h n i c i a n e m p l o y m e n t in t h is r e p o r t w e r e d e r iv e d b y 

a g g r e g a tin g s e p a r a t e e s t im a te s m a d e f o r e a c h o f t h e s ix 

s e c to r s o f t h e e c o n o m y f o r w h i c h t e c h n i c i a n e m p l o y m e n t 

d a t a a r e c o l l e c t e d — p r i v a t e i n d u s t r y , t h e F e d e r a l G o v e r n ­

m e n t , S t a t e g o v e r n m e n t s , lo c a l g o v e r n m e n t s , n o n p r o f i t 

o r g a n i z a t i o n s , 2 a n d c o lle g e s a n d u n i v e r s it i e s . 3 F o r t h e 

p r i v a t e i n d u s t r y s e c t o r , a s u r v e y o f s c i e n t i f ic a n d te c h - 

n ic ia l p e r s o n n e l ( S P T ) w a s c o n d u c t e d in 1 9 6 6 b y t h e 

B u r e a u o f L a b o r S t a t i s t i c s . P u b l i s h e d d a t a f r o m t h is 

s u r v e y d i f f e r s l ig h tly f r o m e s t i m a t e s u s e d in t h i s s t u d y b e ­

c a u s e a d j u s t m e n t s w e r e m a d e t o i n c l u d e t h o s e t e c h n i ­

c ia n s i n f r i m s b e l o w a m i n i m u m s p e c if ic s iz e t h a t w e r e 

e x c l u d e d f r o m t h e s u r v e y . I n t o t a l , a d j u s t m e n t s f o r th e s e 

“ c u t o f f s ” w e r e m a d e in 1 0 o f t h e 3 1 i n d u s t r y g r o u p s f o r 

w h i c h s e p a r a t e e s t i m a t e s w e r e d e v e l o p e d in t h i s s t u d y . T h e 

f o l lo w in g t a b u l a t i o n s h o w s t h e i n d u s t r i e s f o r w h i c h a d j u s t ­

m e n t s w e r e m a d e .

T h e m o s t c u r r e n t e m p l o y m e n t d a t a o n t e c h n i c i a n s 

e m p l o y e d in S t a t e g o v e r n m e n t s a t t h e t im e t h i s s t u d y w a s 

p r e p a r e d w e r e c o l l e c t e d f o r 1 9 6 4 b y t h e B u r e a u o f L a b o r 

S t a ti s t i c s . T h e m o s t c u r r e n t d a t a f o r l o c a l g o v e r n m e n t s is

Number of employees

in smallest size of

Industry firm sampled

Food and kindred products-------------------------------- 10

Textile mill products and apparel:

Textile mill products 1----------------------------------- 50 Apparel1 ---------------------------------------------------- 100

Paper and allied products---------------------------------- 10 Rubber and miscellaenous plastics products---------- 10

Stone, clay, glass, and concrete products:

Hydraulic cem ent1---------------------------------------- 10

Stone, clay, and glass products1--------------------- 4

Lumber and furniture---------------------------------------- 50

Contract construction--------------------------------------- 4

Miscellaneous manufacturing: Tabacco manufactures1---------------------------------- 50 Printing, publishing, and allied industries1-------- 100 Miscellaneous manufacturing industries1---------- 10 Mining, except petroleum---------------------------------- 10 Other transportation services: Local passenger transportation1----------------------- 100

Trucking1------------- j ------------------------------------- 10

Water transportation ------------------------------------ 10

Air transportation!----j---------------------------------- 100 Pipeline transportation---------------------------------- 50

1 A separate employment estimate was not developed for this

industry.

Footnotes appear on p. 28.

2 5

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2 6

f o r 1 9 6 3 , w h i c h a ls o w e r e c o l l e c t e d b y t h e B u r e a u . T h e 

d a t a o n t e c h n i c i a n s e m p l o y e d in c o lle g e s a n d u n i v e r s it i e s 

a r e f o r 1 9 6 5 f r o m a s u r v e y c o n d u c t e d b y t h e N a t io n a l 

S c ie n c e F o u n d a t i o n ( N S F ) a s w e r e d a t a o n t h o s e e m p l o y e d 

in n o n p r o f i t o r g a n iz a t i o n s . T e c h n i c i a n e m p l o y m e n t in t h e 

F e d e r a l G o v e r n m e n t in 1 9 6 6 w a s o b t a i n e d f r o m t h e U .S . 

C iv il S e r v ic e C o m m i s s io n .

I n s e c t o r s w h e r e 1 9 6 6 s u r v e y r e s u l ts w e r e n o t a v a ila b le , 

a d j u s t m e n t s t o a v a ila b le d a t a w e r e m a d e t o p l a c e a ll s e c to r s 

o n a c o m p a r a b l e t im e b a s is . F o r e x a m p l e , e s t i m a t e s o f e m ­

p l o y m e n t o f t e c h n i c i a n s in S t a t e g o v e r n m e n t s in 1 9 6 6 w e r e 

b a s e d o n a t r e n d a n a l y s i s o f i n f o r m a t i o n in t h e B L S s u r v e y s 

o f s c i e n t i f ic a n d t e c h n i c a l p e r s o n n e l in S t a te g o v e r n m e n t s 

i n 1 9 5 9 , 1 9 6 2 , a n d 1 9 6 4 , 4 a u g m e n t e d b y a n a n a ly s is o f t h e 

h i s t o r ic a l r a t i o s o f t e c h n i c i a n s t o s c i e n t i s t s a n d e n g in e e r s in 

t h i s s e c t o r . T h e s c i e n t i s t a n d e n g in e e r e s t i m a t e s u s e d in t h e 

a n a l y s i s w e r e o b t a i n e d f r o m a s t u d y p r e p a r e d b y t h e N S F 

a n d t h e B u r e a u o f L a b o r S t a t i s t i c s . 5 T h e k n o w l e d g e g a in e d 

f r o m t h a t s t u d y a ls o w a s i n c o r p o r a t e d in t h e d e v e l o p m e n t 

o f t e c h n i c i a n e s t im a te s . T h is s a m e g e n e r a l m e t h o d o l o g y w a s 

f o l lo w e d t o d e v e l o p t e c h n i c i a n e m p l o y m e n t e s t i m a t e s f o r 

t h e lo c a l g o v e r n m e n t , c o lle g e s a n d u n i v e r s i t y , a n d n o n p r o f i t 

o r g a n i z a t i o n s e c to r s .

Occupational distributions. N in e s e p a r a t e o c c u p a t i o n a l 

c a t e g o r i e s f o r t e c h n i c i a n s a r e s h o w n i n t h i s r e p o r t f o r 

1 9 6 6 . T h e y a r e a s f o llo w s : ( 1 ) D r a f t s m e n , ( 2 ) e le c t r i c a l 

a n d e l e c t r o n i c e n g in e e r i n g t e c h n i c i a n s , ( 3 ) o t h e r e n g in e e r ­

in g t e c h n i c i a n s , ( 4 ) c h e m i c a l t e c h n i c i a n s , ( 5 ) p h y s i c s 

t e c h n i c i a n s , ( 6 ) m a t h e m a t i c s t e c h n i c i a n s , ( 7 ) o t h e r p h y s ­

ic a l s c ie n c e t e c h n i c i a n s , ( 8 ) lif e s c ie n c e t e c h n i c i a n s , a n d 

( 9 ) a ll o t h e r t e c h n i c i a n s .

H o w e v e r , e a c h o f t h e v a r io u s s u r v e y s u s e d t o d e v e lo p 

t h e 1 9 6 6 e m p l o y m e n t e s t i m a t e s d i d n o t p r o v id e t h i s d e g r e e 

o f o c c u p a t i o n a l d e t a i l . I n s u r v e y s o f p r i v a t e i n d u s t r y c o n ­

d u c t e d b y B L S , s e v e n d i f f e r e n t c a t e g o r i e s a r e d e t a i l e d ; o n l y 

t h r e e c a t e g o r i e s a r e p r e s e n t e d in t h e c o lle g e a n d u n i v e r s it y 

s u r v e y s . T h e o c c u p a t i o n a l d e ta i l a v a ila b le in t h e d i f f e r e n t 

i n d u s t r y s e c to r s s u r v e y s is s h o w n b e lo w :

P r i v a te i n d u s t r y :

D r a f ts m e n , s u r v e y o r s , e l e c t r i c a l a n d e le c t r o n i c t e c h ­

n i c i a n s , o t h e r e n g in e e r i n g a n d p h y s i c a l s c ie n c e t e c h ­

n i c i a n s , b i o lo g ic a l a n d a g r ic u l tu r a l t e c h n i c i a n s , m e d i c a l 

a n d d e n t a l t e c h n i c i a n s , o t h e r t e c h n i c i a n s .

F e d e r a l G o v e r n m e n t :

A b o u t 3 5 j o b t i t l e s u s e d b y t h e U .S . C iv il S e r v ic e C o m ­

m is s i o n , s u c h a s d r a f t s m e n , e le c t r o n i c s e n g in e e r i n g 

t e c h n i c i a n s , m a t h e m a t i c s t e c h n i c i a n s , b i o lo g ic a l t e c h ­

n ic ia n s . 6

S t a t e a n d l o c a l g o v e r n m e n t :

D r a f t s m e n , s u r v e y o r s , e n g in e e r i n g t e c h n i c i a n s , p h y s i c a l 

s c ie n c e t e c h n i c i a n s , b io lo g i c a l t e c h n i c i a n s , 7 m e d ic a l 

a n d d e n t a l t e c h n i c i a n s , o t h e r t e c h n i c i a n s .

N o n p r o f i t o r g a n i z a t i o n s

E n g in e e r i n g a n d p h y s i c a l s c ie n c e t e c h n i c i a n s , lif e 

s c ie n c e t e c h n i c i a n s , o t h e r t e c h n i c i a n s .

C o lle g e s a n d u n i v e r s it i e s :

E n g in e e r i n g a n d p h y s i c a l s c ie n c e t e c h n i c i a n s , lif e 

s c ie n c e t e c h n i c i a n s , o t h e r t e c h n i c i a n s .

I n d e v e l o p i n g a c o m p a r a b l e c la s s if i c a t io n o f o c c u p a ­

t i o n a l s p e c ia l ti e s f o r e a c h o f t h e s ix i n d u s t r y s e c to r s , t h e 

o c c u p a t i o n a l c la s s if i c a t io n f o r d r a f t s m e n , lif e s c ie n c e t e c h ­

n ic ia n s , a n d a ll o t h e r t e c h n i c i a n s w e r e s im ila r , a n d t o t a l s 

w e r e r e a d i ly a v a ila b le f r o m t h e s u r v e y d a t a . H o w e v e r , f o r 

t h e l a r g e s t p o r t i o n o f a ll t e c h n i c i a n s , “ e n g in e e r in g a n d 

p h y s i c a l s c ie n c e t e c h n i c i a n s , ” a n e m p l o y m e n t d i s t r i b u t i o n 

f o r t h e f o l lo w in g o c c u p a t i o n a l c a t e g o r i e s h a d t o b e d e r iv e d :

1 . E n g in e e r i n g t e c h n i c i a n s

a . E l e c t r i c a l a n d e l e c t r o n i c t e c h n i c i a n s

b . O t h e r e n g in e e r i n g t e c h n i c i a n s

2 . C h e m ic a l t e c h n i c i a n s

3 . P h y s ic s t e c h n i c i a n s

4 . M a t h e m a ti c s t e c h n i c i a n s

5 . A ll o t h e r p h y s i c a l s c ie n c e t e c h n i c i a n s

T h e b r e a k d o w n o f t h e e n g in e e r i n g a n d p h y s i c a l s c ie n c e 

g r o u p b y m o r e d e t a i l e d o c c u p a t i o n a l c la s s if i c a t io n s w a s 

b a s e d o n i n f o r m a t i o n f r o m a p o s t c e n s a l s u r v e y .8 H o w e v e r , 

t h e p o s t c e n s a l s u r v e y d i d n o t a llo w f o r a d i s t r i b u t i o n o f 

t e c h n i c i a n s b y i n d u s t r y o f e m p l o y m e n t . T o d e v e l o p e s t i ­

m a t e s o f e m p l o y m e n t in t h e m o r e d e t a i l e d o c c u p a t i o n a l 

c la s s if i c a t io n s b y i n d u s t r y , i t w a s n e c e s s a r y t o u s e a s t a ­

t is ti c a l a n a ly s is s u g g e s te d b y B u r e a u s t a t i s t i c i a n s w h i c h in ­

v o lv e d r e l a t i n g t h e p o s t c e n s a l d a t a t o e s t i m a t e d e m p l o y ­

m e n t o f a ll e n g in e e r i n g a n d s c ie n c e t e c h n i c i a n s in e a c h 

i n d u s t r y . ( S e e Technician Manpower: Requirements,

Resources and Training Needs, C h a p t e r I I , f o r a d d it i o n a l 

i n f o r m a t i o n . )

Projecting technician manpower requirements. I n g e n ­

e r a l, a t h r e e - p h a s e m e t h o d w a s u s e d t o p r o j e c t t e c h n i c i a n 

m a n p o w e r r e q u i r e m e n t s .

I n t h e f i r s t p h a s e , p r o j e c t i o n s w e r e d e v e l o p e d o f e m ­

p l o y m e n t r e q u i r e m e n t s f o r w a g e a n d s a la r y w o r k e r s b y 

i n d u s t r y a s p a r t o f t h e B u r e a u ’s p r o g r a m o f p r o j e c t i n g

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2 7

i n d u s t r y m a n p o w e r r e q u i r e m e n t s f o r t h e e n ti r e e c o n o m y . 

T h e s e p r o j e c t i o n s w e r e b a s e d o n g e n e r a l a s s u m p t i o n s c o n ­

c e r n i n g t h e n a t u r e a n d c o m p o s i t i o n o f t h e e c o n o m y in 

1 9 8 0 . T h e m a j o r a s s u m p t io n s u n d e r l y i n g t h e s e p r o j e c t i o n s 

i n c l u d e : A n a t i o n a l u n e m p l o y m e n t r a t e o f 3 p e r c e n t ; a 

c o n t i n u a t i o n o f h ig h r a t e s o f e c o n o m i c g r o w t h ; c o n t i n u i n g 

g r o w t h o f r e s e a r c h a n d d e v e l o p m e n t ( R & D ) e x p e n d i t u r e s , 

a l t h o u g h a t a s lo w e r r a t e o f g r o w t h t h a n s h o w n in t h e la te 

1 9 5 0 ’s a n d e a r l y 1 9 6 0 ’s; a le v e l o f d e f e n s e a n d s p a c e a c tiv it i e s in t h e t a r g e t y e a r a p p r o x i m a t i n g t h o s e o f 1 9 6 3 , s o m e ­

w h a t h i g h e r t h a n t h e le v e ls b e f o r e t h e V i e t N a m b u i l d u p ; 

a n d s c i e n t i f ic a n d t e c h n o l o g ic a l a d v a n c e s in r e c e n t y e a r s 

w ill c o n t i n u e a t a b o u t t h e s a m e r a te .

T h e s e c o n d p h a s e o f t h e p r o j e c t i o n m e t h o d d e v e l o p e d 

t h e r a t i o o f s c i e n t i s t s a n d e n g in e e r s t o t o t a l w a g e a n d s a la r y 

w o r k e r e m p l o y m e n t , b y d e t a i l e d i n d u s t r y s e c to r a n d f o r 

e a c h y e a r f r o m 1 9 5 0 - 6 6 . T h e s e r a t i o s w e r e d e r iv e d f r o m 

p u b l i s h e d d a t a o n s c ie n c e a n d e n g in e e r in g e m p l o y m e n t b y 

i n d u s t r y 9 a n d h i s t o r ic a l B L S w a g e a n d s a la r y w o r k e r e m ­

p l o y m e n t d a t a . 10 T h e r a t i o o f s c i e n t i s t s a n d e n g in e e r s t o 

w a g e a n d s a la r y w o r k e r s in e a c h i n d u s t r y w a s p r o j e c t e d t o 

1 9 8 0 o n t h e b a s is o f t h e p a s t t r e n d a n d a p p li e d t o t h e 1 9 8 0 

e s t i m a t e s o f w a g e a n d s a la r y w o r k e r e m p l o y m e n t r e q u i r e ­

m e n t s , b y i n d u s t r y , t o y i e l d f i r s t a p p r o x i m a t i o n s o f 

s c i e n t i s t a n d e n g in e e r m a n p o w e r r e q u i r e m e n t s . T h e s e f i r s t 

a p p r o x i m a t i o n s w e r e e x a m i n e d f o r r e a s o n a b l e n e s s a n d c o n ­

s i s t e n c y b a s e d o n f a c t o r s s u c h a s a n a n a ly s is o f t r e n d s in 

R & D a n d d e f e n s e a c t i v it i e s b y i n d u s t r y , a n d t h e le v e ls o f 

s u c h a c t i v it i e s a s s u m e d in t h e i n d u s t r y e m p l o y m e n t p r o j e c ­

t i o n s .

T h e t h i r d p h a s e d e v e l o p e d r a t i o s o f t e c h n i c i a n e m p l o y ­

m e n t in e a c h o c c u p a t i o n a l s p e c ia l ty t o e m p l o y m e n t o f 

s c i e n t i s t s a n d e n g in e e r s in r e l a t e d o c c u p a t i o n a l s p e c ia ltie s 

f o r 1 9 6 6 a n d f o r a s m a n y e a r lie r y e a r s a s w a s p o s s ib l e f r o m 

a v a ila b le d a t a . T h e y w e r e d e v e l o p e d f o r e ig h t o c c u p a t i o n a l 

c a t e g o r i e s a n d f o r e a c h m a j o r i n d u s t r y s e c to r a n d f o r 3 0 

i n d u s t r i e s w i t h i n t h e p r i v a t e s e c to r . P r o j e c t e d 1 9 8 0 e m p l o y ­

m e n t r e q u i r e m e n t s w e r e n o t d e v e l o p e d e i t h e r f o r e le c t r o n i c 

a n d e le c t r i c a l e n g in e e r i n g t e c h n i c i a n s o r o t h e r e n g in e e r i n g 

t e c h n i c i a n s b e c a u s e o n l y 1 9 6 6 e m p l o y m e n t a n d n o t r e n d 

d a t a w e r e a v a ila b le f o r t h e s e o c c u p a t i o n a l c la s s if ic a tio n s . 

T h e f o l lo w in g l is t d e ta i ls t h e t e c h n i c i a n s p e c ia l it i e s , a n d 

s p e c if ic s c i e n t i f ic a n d e n g in e e r i n g o c c u p a t i o n s t o w h i c h 

t h e y w e r e r e l a t e d .

T h e r a t i o s o f t e c h n i c i a n s t o s c i e n t i s t s a n d e n g in e e r s , b y 

o c c u p a t i o n a l s p e c ia l ty a n d i n d u s t r y , t h e n w e r e p r o j e c t e d t o 

1 9 8 0 . T h e p r o j e c t e d r a t i o s w e r e b a s e d p r i m a r i ly o n p a s t 

t r e n d s b u t w e r e a d j u s t e d t o r e f l e c t f a c t o r s e x p e c t e d t o in ­

f l u e n c e t h e u t i l i z a t i o n o f t e c h n i c i a n s r e la tiv e t o s c ie n c e a n d 

e n g in e e r i n g m a n p o w e r in t h e f u t u r e , s u c h a s t h e f u n c t i o n a l 

d i s t r i b u t i o n o f s c i e n t i s t a n d e n g in e e r e m p l o y m e n t . 11

T e c h n i c i a n

o c c u p a t i o n

S c i e n t i s t s a n d 

e n g in e e r s

D r a f t s m e n

E n g in e e r i n g t e c h n i c i a n s 

L if e s c ie n c e t e c h n i c i a n s 

M a t h e m a ti c s t e c h n i c i a n s 

C h e m ic a l t e c h n i c i a n s 

P h y s ic s t e c h n i c i a n s 

O t h e r p h y s i c a l s c ie n c e 

t e c h n i c i a n s

A ll o t h e r t e c h n i c i a n s

E n g in e e r s

E n g in e e r s

L if e s c i e n t i s t s

M a t h e m a ti c i a n s

C h e m is ts

P h y s i c i s t s

A ll s c i e n t i s t s a n d 

e n g in e e r s 

A ll s c i e n t i s t s a n d 

e n g in e e r s

E s t i m a t e s o f d e a t h a n d r e t i r e m e n t lo s s e s t o t h e o c c u p a ­

t i o n w e r e d e v e l o p e d b y a p p ly i n g a p p r o p r i a t e s e p a r a t i o n 

r a t e s t o t h e a g e d i s t r i b u t i o n o f t h e o c c u p a t i o n . S e p a r a t i o n 

r a t e s r e s u l t i n g f r o m r e t i r e m e n t s a n d d e a t h s w e r e d e v e l o p e d 

f r o m a s e r ie s o f t a b l e s o f w o r k i n g lif e p r e p a r e d b y t h e U .S . 

D e p a r t m e n t o f L a b o r 12 w h i c h f o l lo w s t h r o u g h s u c c e s s iv e 

a g e s t h e e x p e r i e n c e o f a n in it i a l c o h o r t o f 1 0 0 ,0 0 0 b i r th s .

T r a n s f e r s o u t o f t h e o c c u p a t i o n m a y b e m e a s u r e d 

e i t h e r b y f o l lo w u p s o f p e r s o n s c o m p l e ti n g t r a i n i n g f o r a n 

o c c u p a t i o n o r b y f o l l o w u p s o f a la r g e g r o u p o f in d iv id u a ls 

c u r r e n t l y e m p l o y e d in a n o c c u p a t i o n . 13 F o r t e c h n i c i a n s , 

t h e t r a n s f e r r a te w a s d e v e l o p e d p r i m a r i ly u s i n g t h e l a t t e r 

m e t h o d . 14

Estimating supply of technician manpower. I n e a c h o f 

t h e d i f f e r e n t a n a l y s e s o f s u p p l y in t h i s s t u d y , e s t i m a t e s o f 

t h e n u m b e r o f w o r k e r s w h o w o u l d e n t e r t e c h n i c i a n o c c u p a ­

t i o n s d u r i n g t h e 1 9 6 6 - 7 9 p e r i o d u n d e r t h e s t a t e d a s s u m p ­

t i o n s w e r e d e v e l o p e d s e p a r a t e l y f o r e a c h o f t h e f o l lo w in g 

s o u r c e s o f entry: P r e e m p l o y m e n t t r a i n i n g in p o s t ­

s e c o n d a r y o c c u p a t i o n a l c u r r ic u lu m s , e m p l o y e r t r a i n i n g p r o ­

g r a m s , a n d t r a i n i n g p r o g r a m s p r o v i d e d u n d e r t h e M a n p o w e r 

D e v e lo p m e n t a n d T r a i n i n g A c t ; t e c h n i c i a n - r e l a t e d t r a i n i n g 

in n a t u r a l s c ie n c e a n d e n g in e e r i n g b a c h e l o r ’s d e g r e e c u r ­

r i c u l u m s in c o lle g e s a n d u n i v e r s it i e s o r in t h e A r m e d 

F o r c e s ; a n d w o r k e r s u p g r a d e d f r o m o t h e r o c c u p a t i o n s . F o r 

e a c h s o u r c e o f s u p p l y ( e x c e p t u p g r a d in g s ) , t h e b a s ic t e c h ­

n i q u e u s e d t o e s t i m a t e s u p p l y i n v o lv e d t h e f o l lo w in g : T h e 

d e v e l o p m e n t o f e s t i m a t e s f o r e a c h y e a r f r o m 1 9 6 6 t o 1 9 7 9 

o f ( 1 ) t h e n u m b e r o f p e r s o n s c o m p l e t i n g t h e t r a i n i n g , a n d 

t h e p r o p o r t i o n o f t h o s e w h o c o m p l e t e t h e t r a i n i n g w h o w ill 

e n t e r t e c h n i c i a n e m p l o y m e n t ; a n d ( 2 ) t h e n u m b e r o f n e w 

e n t r a n t s d u r i n g 1 9 6 6 - 7 9 p e r i o d w h o w ill le a v e t h e o c c u p a ­

t i o n b y 1 9 8 0 b e c a u s e o f d e a t h , r e t i r e m e n t , o r t r a n s f e r t o 

a n o t h e r o c c u p a t i o n . T h e l a t t e r e s t i m a t e s w e r e d e d u c t e d 

f r o m t h e t o t a l n u m b e r o f n e w e n t r a n t s d u r i n g t h e 1 9 6 6 - 7 9 

p e r i o d t o d e v e lo p n e t s u p p l y in 1 9 8 0 . E s t i m a t e s o f t h e 

n u m b e r o f w o r k e r s t o b e u p g r a d e d w e r e e s t i m a t e d a s t h e 

d i f f e r e n c e b e t w e e n t o t a l r e q u i r e m e n t s f o r t e c h n i c i a n s a n d 

p r o j e c t e d e n t r a n t s f r o m a ll o t h e r s o u r c e s .15

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— FOOTNOTES—

1 See Technical E ducation in th e Junior College, N ew P rograms fo r N ew Jobs, Norman C. Harris, American Association of

Junior Colleges, 1964.

2 The nonprofit sector includes philanthropic foundations;

voluntary health agencies; independent nonprofit institutions; certain Federal contract research centers; professional and technical

societies; and science museums, zoological and botanical gardens,

and arboritums.

3 Data are collected for early year employment in most of

these surveys and, therefore, the estimates of current employment

and projected 1980 requirements are early year estimates.

4 E m p lo y m en t o f S cien tific and Technical P ersonnel in S ta te

G overnm ent A gencies, R e p o rt on a 1959 Survey, National Science

Foundation, NSF 61-17, 1961; E m p lo y m en t o f S cien tific and Technical P ersonnel in S ta te G overn m en t Agencies, 1962, (BLS Bulletin

1412), June 1964; E m p lo y m en t o f Scientific, Professional, and

Technical P ersonnel in S ta te G overnm ents, January 1964 (BLS Bulletin 1557), 1967.

5 E m p lo y m en t o f Scientists and Engineers in th e U nited

S ta tes— 1 950-1966, National Science Foundation, NSF 68-30.

6 See O ccu pation s o f F ederal White-Collar Workers, O cto b er

31, 1966, U.S. Civil Service Commission, 1968.

7 Included with agricultural technicians in local government

surveys.

8 Postcensal Survey of Professional and Technical Personnel.

See Technician M anpow er: R equirem ents, R esou rces and Training

N eeds for more information on the postcensal survey.

9 E m p lo y m en t o f Scientists and Engineers 1950-66, op. cit.,

footnote 4.

10 E m p lo ym en t and Earnings S tatistics fo r th e U nited States,

190 9-68 (BLS Bulletin 1312-6), August 1968.

11 The ratio of technicians to scientists and engineers differs

among functions, as was illustrated by a study of the aerospace

industry conducted by the Stanford Research Institute, The Indu stry - G overnm ent A erospace R elationship, Vol. II— S upporting

R e s e a r c h , prepared for Aerospace Industries Association of

America, Inc., by Stanford Research Institute, Menlo Park, California, 1963. For a more detailed explanation of the method used

to project technician manpowr requirements, see Technician Manpow er: R equirem ents, R esources, and Training N eeds, ch. IV, pp.

43-57.

12 The Length o f W orking L ife fo r Males, 1 900-1960 (U.S.

Department of Labor, Manpower Administration, 1963), Manpower Report 8.

13 The first method is illustrated in T w o Years A fte r the College D egree— Work and F urther S tu d y Patterns. The second

method is illustrated in the P ostcensal S urvey o f Professional and

Technical Personnel.

14 For a more detailed explanation of the methods used to

estimate losses to an occupation, see “Projections of Manpower

Supply in a Specific Occupation,” op. cit., footnote 16.

15 For a more detailed explanation of the method used

to estimate technician supply, see ch. V in Technician Manpow er: R equ irem en ts, Resources, and Training N eeds, op. cit.,

pp. 58-77, footnote 11.

* U. S. G O V E R N M E N T P R I N T I N G O F F I C E : 1970 O - 378-623

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