[rschmitty]

That is a bit of a reach to call it blue collar.

I have blue collar friends from high school who envy what programmers do and make and I do what I can to try and persuade/teach them to learn to code and make a better life for themselves.

[parasubvert]

Blue collar workers can make a lot of money these days, especially if their trade required significant theoretical learning and practical training.

Electricians, mechanics, heavy machinery operators in Alberta can make $150,000 in the oil sands before overtime, plus fly-in/fly-out costs; in the major urban centers, upwards of $100,000. If you're young, add in overtime and you're looking at $150-200k+. Foremen and supervisors can make up to double.

A programmer in the Bay Area will top out around $200k as a senior member of technical staff.

[asdfologist]

whoosh

Edit: I thought the original "blue collar" remark was sarcastic. Am I wrong?

[BugBrother]

Most everyone has forgotten the 2000 dot com crash, when all the computer jobs disappeared. This "learn to code" is just how it was then.

I would bet money that in less than five years, a lot of software people will be unemployed -- again. (If I win, good. If not, good. :-) )

[smsm42]

I'm curious - how much money would you be willing to bet on that? At which odds?

I've been through the dotcom crash and minor disturbances after, and the jobs never "disappeared". Yes, there were layoffs, pay cuts and hiring freezes. But not all jobs disappeared, and most of the people who lost their jobs found new ones after a while. I'm not diminishing the pain and suffering of those who got caught in bad situations there, but it's not like the whole IT disappeared and people went back to abacuses and wired telegraph.

[joshdance]

"This "learn to code" is just how it was then." - really? I don't remember it that way. Sure there was lots of people who wanted to get in, and lots of books printed but nothing like the sustained push that there is now.