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The Impact of Defense Spending on Nondefense Engineering Labor Markets A Report to the National Academy of Engineering (1989) / Chapter Skim
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The Current Situation
Pages 5-12

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From page 5...
... , a $70 billion item in 198S, increased by 62 percent, compared to the increase of 35 percent in total defense outlays. Growth in these expenditures, in addition to the increase In nondefense activities suggested by the 12 percent growth in real Gross National Product in the 5-year penod, generated a substantial increase in the number of engineers employed -- about 200,000, or 14 percent (see Figure 3, page 7, and Appendix Table 2, page 70~.
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From page 6...
... Gross National Product (in constant dollars) arid defense outlays as a percent of Gross National Product, 1948-1985.
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From page 7...
... Total Department of Defense military outlays, l98S-l989 (in billions of current dollars)
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From page 8...
... Except for computer science and aeronautical and electrical engineering graduates, job offers fell dramatically after 1982 (see Figure 6, page 9, for selected results; a more complete table is in Appendix Table 5, page 72~. Unemployment rates, however, suggest a tighter market for engineers in 1984 than at any time since 1976, with aeronautical/astronautical engineers and electrical engineers reporting the lowest unemployment rates.
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From page 9...
... Fewer American students were continuing their engineering education at the graduate level; more of the doctoral graduates in engineering, normally candidates for faculty positions, were said to have been attracted to industry; and more of the facula jobs went to foreign students, who constitute a high proportion of the Ph.D.s. The extent of this shortage vanes by discipline and is greater in fields such as electncal engineering than in fields such as civil eng~neenng.
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From page 10...
... Despite the increase in defense outlays in the 198Os, there is no evidence that the defense program seriously depleted the supply of Ph.D.-leve} engineers and scientists available for nondefense work. About 20 percent of engineers worked on defense projects in 1985; 62 percent of aeronautical and 30 percent of electrical engineers were in defense work (see Appendix Table 7, page 74~.
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From page 11...
... A weakening of demand in some civilian industries, reflecting specific situations rather than a general failure of economic growth, contnbuted to the adjustments It should be recognized, however, that the recruiting and placement experiences of the large corporations and top engineering schools may not be representative of the market as a wholes Consequently, future data collections should pay increased attention to the small en~epreneunal industry side of the market 1 1
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Key Terms

  • defense work
  • placement officers
  • defense program
  • appendix table
  • labor market

  • defense outlays
  • civilian industries
  • defense projects
  • data collections
  • pay increased

  • engineering schools
  • placement experiences
  • total defense
  • top engineering
  • reflecting specific

  • future data
  • defense buildup
  • increased attention
  • unemployment rates
  • defense employment

  • specific situations
  • electrical engineers
  • wholes consequently
  • civilian work
  • civilian industry

  • farm machinery
  • foreign students
  • work confers
  • civilian applications
  • contact work


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