LETTERS to the editor

Skilled Labor Debate Rages

Dear Editor, Regarding the skilled labor controversy, here is another vantage point. First, Mr. Levenson is correct in saying that the industry does not need union offset pressmen. We do, however, need pressmen. What we have today are, for the most part, operators.

In this day of the "McDonald-ization" of many industries, including printing, automation and turnaround are paramount. If you asked an operator about print length, wire vs. felt, what densitometers do, spectrophotometry, ink tacks, feeding wavy paper, screen angles, emulsification, dot patterns, etc., all you would get is a blank stare.