I saw how a lifetime of farming and factory work absolutely wrecked my parents and my grandparents and decided VERY young that I didn’t want that for myself.
Welder here... couldn't give a crap about being looked up to... truth is the pay/benefits are crap, and the lack of respect from bosses is despicable... why would I want to work for McDonald's wages? Pre covid McDonald's paid $7/hr and a good welder could easily get $20/hr.... now McDonald's pays $20/hr and shops pay $25/hr... if we made about 3x McDonald's pay before then we should be 3x what it is now... if shops paid $60/hr then I doubt there would be a lack of tradesmen in the field
Instant gratification? Hell no we just want to afford rent. Little pay for 3-4 years? Why struggling to make rent for that time when you can just go for better paying jobs now? Or in that 3-4 year period where you would be struggling anyway. Why not put that time into a degree? (At least one that actually makes sense)
“WHY does no one want to work long, unpredictable hours for a wage $5 above the poverty line anymore!!! What happened to the good old days where you could pay someone far under their actual worth for them to do body breaking work and be spoken to as if they’re insignificant?!! This generation is SO lost!”
New employees are treated awful. The whole industry is full of older people that just bad mouth younger people. They don't want to train anyone, and just overall have nasty attitudes.
Nobody wants to break their back, get yelled at all day, work outside in the heat, sweat your fucking ass off… when you can make the same at Amazon in the A/C.
I wanted to do all those things and make great money. Turns out the industry didnt care. Took me less than a year to realize trades were gonna be the death of me
I’ve heard this argument from every old man I’ve ever worked for in my 10 years of construction and trades experience. There is so much wrong with the trades industries but the older generation consistently blames young people for the decline. The average salary for an electrician (which I am STILL apprenticing for) in the US today is right under $56,000. I went to college AND served in the military but I just got laid off along with 61 other excellent employees. Now I am interviewing with companies and showing them my level of experience and knowledge about the trade and the desire to work hard but they are low balling me on the salary left and right.
What's more likely, the entire nation for whatever reason just collectively started deciding they don't wanna get their hands dirty, or maaaaaybe it's the fact that most trade jobs have seen their pay stagnate and people aren't willing to do the most back breaking, dangerous, and high skill work for $2 more an hour than working at McDonalds.
Like everyone else is saying, the actual, non-propaganda, reason that people stopped goinf into the trades is because for the pay they are getting, they might as well go work at McDonalds.
Yeah, but these jobs kind of suck and you were literally treated horribly everyplace. All the places I’ve worked at I’ve been treated horribly simply because I was new. There’s no real training and structure to help people truly learn and improve instead you have to rely on the guy you are with that day and hope that he’s in the mood to show you what you need to know. And of course there’s just bullying and put downs from immature coworkers.
Some advice I’ll give you, is if you want young people to start working in the trades, don’t be petty and badmouth them like they are the reason the trades are dying. Giving people incentive to work WILL make them work.
The pay sucks, no benefits, no retirement.
Why on Earth would I want to do "back-breaking" work for little pay? When I can go to college and still have a functioning body when I'm older?
I saw how a lifetime of farming and factory work absolutely wrecked my parents and my grandparents and decided VERY young that I didn’t want that for myself.
That’s not true at all. Kids are smarter than climbing through a 130° attic for $15 an hour.
Welder here... couldn't give a crap about being looked up to... truth is the pay/benefits are crap, and the lack of respect from bosses is despicable... why would I want to work for McDonald's wages? Pre covid McDonald's paid $7/hr and a good welder could easily get $20/hr.... now McDonald's pays $20/hr and shops pay $25/hr... if we made about 3x McDonald's pay before then we should be 3x what it is now... if shops paid $60/hr then I doubt there would be a lack of tradesmen in the field
they can stay out of the trades, just makes me more valueable
Pay more and ill consider it
Training is horrible.
Instant gratification? Hell no we just want to afford rent. Little pay for 3-4 years? Why struggling to make rent for that time when you can just go for better paying jobs now? Or in that 3-4 year period where you would be struggling anyway. Why not put that time into a degree? (At least one that actually makes sense)
“WHY does no one want to work long, unpredictable hours for a wage $5 above the poverty line anymore!!! What happened to the good old days where you could pay someone far under their actual worth for them to do body breaking work and be spoken to as if they’re insignificant?!! This generation is SO lost!”
New employees are treated awful. The whole industry is full of older people that just bad mouth younger people. They don't want to train anyone, and just overall have nasty attitudes.
More people should be more greatful for the blue collar workers cause without them they wouldn’t have homes, cars, running water, electricity, ect
Nobody wants to break their back, get yelled at all day, work outside in the heat, sweat your fucking ass off… when you can make the same at Amazon in the A/C.
I wanted to do all those things and make great money. Turns out the industry didnt care. Took me less than a year to realize trades were gonna be the death of me
I’ve heard this argument from every old man I’ve ever worked for in my 10 years of construction and trades experience. There is so much wrong with the trades industries but the older generation consistently blames young people for the decline. The average salary for an electrician (which I am STILL apprenticing for) in the US today is right under $56,000. I went to college AND served in the military but I just got laid off along with 61 other excellent employees. Now I am interviewing with companies and showing them my level of experience and knowledge about the trade and the desire to work hard but they are low balling me on the salary left and right.
What's more likely, the entire nation for whatever reason just collectively started deciding they don't wanna get their hands dirty, or maaaaaybe it's the fact that most trade jobs have seen their pay stagnate and people aren't willing to do the most back breaking, dangerous, and high skill work for $2 more an hour than working at McDonalds.
Ok sir skilled trades are so good lead by example get off youtube and start a skilled trade job bet you wont
Like everyone else is saying, the actual, non-propaganda, reason that people stopped goinf into the trades is because for the pay they are getting, they might as well go work at McDonalds.
Yeah, but these jobs kind of suck and you were literally treated horribly everyplace. All the places I’ve worked at I’ve been treated horribly simply because I was new. There’s no real training and structure to help people truly learn and improve instead you have to rely on the guy you are with that day and hope that he’s in the mood to show you what you need to know. And of course there’s just bullying and put downs from immature coworkers.
Some advice I’ll give you, is if you want young people to start working in the trades, don’t be petty and badmouth them like they are the reason the trades are dying. Giving people incentive to work WILL make them work.