The Skilled Labor Shortage By The Numbers
A common theme addressed in this blog is the nationwide shortage of skilled trade workers and the opportunities that spring from it for people who do opt for a career in the trades. Hardly a week passes when I don’t come across some startling information about this shortage. For instance, buried within an article in […]
How’s Your B.S. Detector?
I want to keep this blog family-friendly, so I won’t spell out what B.S. stands for. Anyway, it’s unnecessary since you all know what it means. (No, I’m not referring to a Bachelor of Science college degree.) The ability to detect B.S. is one of the handiest skills to have as you go through life. […]
Would You Relocate for a Job?
This blog exists to detail the advantages of a skilled trade career and point readers in the right direction to get started on one. Yet, this writer has done some soul searching and realized that the opportunities may not be universal. Even though there is a severe shortage of skilled trade workers nationwide, some rural […]
Bringing Back Blue-Collar Pride
There is a modern misconception that the “ideal” career path is one that involves an expensive education, a strenuous corporate climb, and thousands of hours in an office with a boardroom as the ultimate destination. In reality, careers like this can entail tens of thousands of dollars in debt, lack of fulfillment, and burnout. The […]
Why More Women Should Consider a Career in the Trades
Trades jobs are an excellent avenue to build one’s career, pursue rewarding and meaningful work, and experience financial freedom at a much younger age than the four-year degree path. What’s more, the demand for skilled trades workers is forecasted to increase steadily in the coming decade and has historically held strong during economic downturns. This […]
The Deepest Shade Of Blue Collar
A recurring theme of this blog is how attractive the skilled mechanical-electrical trades are compared with many white-collar jobs that require a college education. This time I’ll compare those trades with other skilled blue-collar careers that typically offer decent pay and benefits. One of these is driving a truck. Truck drivers earn an average annual […]
Job Skills That Transfer To The Trades
I suspect that some of you visitors to this website are victims of Covid-related job losses. Millions of service workers who used to work for bars, restaurants, hotels, retail stores, etc., for the past year have found themselves relying on government handouts or a series of part-time gigs to pay their bills. If you are […]
100% Effort in the Plumbing Trade
Like many young men in high school, Gabe played sports and hoped that his athletic talent would be his key to a college education. While he didn’t know what his major would be, he was sure of one thing: he had no desire to sit at a desk or spend his days in an office. […]
Blue Collar Wealth – No Longer Once in a “Blue-Moon”
Guest Blog post from Lineman Central. The best financial advisors will tell you that the creation of wealth creates discipline, planning and hard work. What if there was a career path that provided above average pay while also instilling those interpersonal values and virtues? That is exactly what the trades are well-suited for. When asked […]
The Skills Gap Means Opportunity
The shortage of skilled trade workers is a global problem, not just limited to the U.S. and our North American neighbors. Manpower Group is an employment organization that conducts an annual survey with some 14,000 participants in 15 countries. Their latest survey, conducted last year and covering 2019, showed that an all-time high of 54% […]