For unexplained reasons, stereotypes that deter individuals from pursuing a career in skilled trades and manufacturing persist despite the fact that over the past several years, trades industries have changed – and so have the training, the pay and the job market itself – making it a much for attractive, viable option for those looking to enter the job market.
That’s why we’re here to set the record straight and dispel some common myths about trades careers.
FALSE: You’ll make less money than individuals with a four-year college degree.
NPR recently ran a story about how millennials should consider a career in trades. Among several interesting points about the current state of the job market, the article investigates the truth about how much skilled trades workers are paid compared to other professionals.
Anthony Carnevale, the director of the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce, tells NPR that national averages lump chain store retail employees in with master carpenters and electricians when developing national averages, which drags down the average for skilled trades workers. The fact is an average electrician makes $5,000 a year more than the average college graduate.
When you factor in the cost of attending a two-year Career and Technical Education (CTE) Program or an apprenticeship with a reputable company vs. the cost of a four-year college degree, it’s clear to see that the pathway towards the trade industry can often be the more economical and rewarding option for those interested in pursuing this type of career.
FALSE: The work requires hard labor and isn’t intellectually stimulating.
The stereotype that blue-collar work requires hard, dirty labor on the job site or mindless work on an assembly line simply isn’t true.
Skilled tradespersons are artists in their own right. We work with several local community colleges and technical training schools in our area who are grooming some of the most talented welders and carpenters to enter the workforce.
Moreover, advances in technology have completely changed the landscape. Consider the manufacturing industry: Automated processes and complex production equipment combined with mechanical engineering and rapid prototyping technologies have created an entirely new working environment for those in mechatronics, industrial machining, process control, etc.
These environments challenge employees to flex their creative muscles and think critically to solve problems daily, whether finding new ways to make factories more energy-efficient, streamline production processes or quickly prototype an invention to a predetermined set of specifications.
FALSE: Trades jobs are disappearing
While conspiracy theorists may try to convince all American trades jobs are being taken over by robots, the data suggests otherwise.
In fact, the skilled trades are the hardest jobs to fill in the United States, with data from the National FFA citing 550,000 jobs open in the trade, transportation and utilities sector and 246,000 jobs open in manufacturing.
Georgetown University’s Carnevale told NPR that a possible explanation for all of the skilled trades job openings is because baby-boom workers are retiring, leaving these positions up for grabs, citing the fact that there are 600,000 jobs for electricians in the country today, and about half of those will open up over the next decade.
And it’s not just electricians. Baby boomers are retiring from all trades, including nuclear power plant operators, carpenters, utility workers and welders, among others. In fact, the National Center for Welding Education and Training predicts by 2024, demand for welders will increase by 30 percent. This represents a huge opportunity for individuals looking to get a solid education and enter a dynamic, challenging work environment.
In our conversations with program heads, department chairs and instructors at CTE Programs and local community colleges, we’ve heard how public perception has changed over the past several years about what it means to work the trades industry. The truth of the matter is there is a huge market need for these jobs and a huge opportunity to learn, grow and be rewarded for working in these industries.
What other trades/manufacturing stereotypes do you come across you’d like to prove wrong?
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