Comment on Why many in Gen Z are ditching college for training in skilled trades
FrowingFostek@lemmy.world 23 hours agoI totally agree the demand will be there, provided the jobs are there.
We may need those skilled trades to maintain infrastructure but, if no one is opening the books for large projects to begin we won’t see a boom in training.
Mirran@lemmynsfw.com 17 hours ago
Also opening the wallet for wages. I can tell you that wastewater is seriously graying because nobody in the US wants to hire unlicensed or level 1s, and while getting your Operator L1 license might be a couple hundred dollars, getting L2 or L3 depending on state can run into five figures easy. Pay is also serious shit - Level 1 operators make basically the same as your local barista, and L3 barely makes $70-80k in most areas (for an idea, an L3 in most states should be able to design, source materials for, oversee the construction of, and run a wastewater plant unaided. They’re professional engineers in all but name.)
FrowingFostek@lemmy.world 15 hours ago
I was talking to a first year apprentice about his time in college and aside from him being a writer he studied that kinda stuff. I think he said it was “conservation” was the course he took in college. I asked him why he didn’t get into that field. He told me it was very competitive and there weren’t many jobs.
I know for other locals they pay your licensing because, allegedly they see the return on investment from their contractors. I guess it could also help if your local union has its own training facility.
All this to say, I think the barrier for entry is gate kept by the wealthy when there’s no union involved.