Who Will Log? Occupational Choice and Prestige in New England's North Woods

Abstract

Abstract To explain the declining recruitment of workers in the logging industry in northern New England, we conducted a multiple-methods study of the logging workforce in the region. Our study found that, despite considerable familial attachment to logging, most loggers in the region would not encourage their sons or daughters to be loggers, and only half the loggers surveyed expected to be employed in logging five years hence. Although most loggers identified positive attributes of their work–such as being outdoors and having a sense of accomplishment–as reasons for becoming loggers, some said they logged because there were few alternatives or because they lacked the education for other employment. In addition, most loggers in the region felt that the general public held logging in low esteem. Results have implications for logging labor supply and labor recruitment efforts in a region heavily dependent on the forest products industry.