Blue Collar Jobs In Detroit

It is no lie that, at the beginning of the 20th century, many workers migrated to Detroit as they focused on getting blue-collar jobs (Millington 282). These emerged because of the rapidly developing auto plants in the city. They gave everyone the confidence that, with admirable competencies and ethics, it was possible to own house, buy a car and attain economic stability. That made Detroit one of the dream cities in the US. Others with similar industrial development included the likes Chicago with its meatpacking companies and Cleveland with its numerous steel mills. It is a tendency that progressed for decades, thereby leading to prosperity in the major cities in the states surrounding the Great Lakes region. As that happened, Detroit grew

First, as the country’s economy started to shift from the manufacturing industry to other service-based business, it created an opening for stiff external competition (Millington 283). The Japanese vehicles appeared in the US market. They attracted many consumers because of their uniqueness and affordability (Padnani par.4). With the increased importation of Japanese auto, the well-paying jobs in the car making and assembling processes diminished as the companies that supplied materials of steel and those that made vehicles in Detroit shut down their operations. People who experienced the city’s decline from the 1950s up to 1980s fled to other townships (Padnani par.1). They encompassed a majority of Whites who resolved to pursue their dreams elsewhere in suburban areas. The spirit of democracy that supported the country’s victory in the Second World War and formed the foundations of Detroit (as a Motor City) led to a six-decade descending spiral of unemployment, thereby forcing the population to shrink and the rate of taxes to rise (Guerrieri, Hartley and Hurst 121). The city’s overreliance on the auto companies stumbled in a disastrous manner. It was hard for Detroit to recover from that economic downturn. It is no wonder that all US’ industrialized towns declined, but only Detroit suffered steady and high rates of disinvestment and depopulation for over 60 years

The second factor that contributed to the decline of the city is attributable to misguided political leadership (Block par.19). Rather than handling real issues like finding solutions to the crumbling vehicle companies, Detroit’s politicians engaged in a game of pushing everything forward. They bought off any unsatisfied worker through the continuous increment of pensions (Padnani par.18). By doing so, they avoided their responsibilities by transferring issues of the city to the next-in-line political leaders. That inclination continued until the accumulation of problems reached an unsolvable threshold. After that, the city began to deteriorate gradually under the weight of its political-bred issues. For instance, the failure to address the increasing tax rate increased the financial burden of the residents (Guerrieri, Hartley and Hurst 122). Even with high taxes, the city did not provide expected services. As of now, over 40% of all lights on the streets are not working properly. That same decadence is observable in the police response approach that takes an average of 58 minutes (Beyer par.3). It is the reason as to why Detroit’s crime rate continued to increase over the years. Unemployment, high criminal activities and poor public services forced people to migrate to other areas of the country (Millington 285). It caused significant disinvestment in Detroit’s large number of abandoned houses. These buildings