Have We Reached Critical Mass in the Trades?

Critical mass (noun): a point at which change occurs

Although the origin of the term “critical mass” was brought into our collective vocabulary during the development of nuclear technology, it has evolved to mean a pivotal point; a point at which some sort of change is going to occur.

Over the past few years, I’ve written columns about the state of labor in the trades and the increasing lack of qualified and quality trainees coming into the field. Not to belabor the obvious but I recently had the opportunity to talk with manufacturers’ rep who is also a friend of some 35+ years. This man is in a position to see and hear what is happening in our market, he opined on the subject and brought it into sharp focus. The topic was labor, and news wasn’t good. 

The Gap

“The good mechanics and journeymen are all working,” my friend said. “There is a huge (his word) gap between the really good guys, the quality guys, and the next level of what I’ll call ‘mediocre’ tradesmen and it goes down from there. It’s become a chasm that must be bridged if the trades are going to thrive and survive moving forward. And, of course, the problem with the current pool of potential apprentices... none of whom I have found, know what ‘work’ is all about.”

The gap between the really good craftsmen and everyone else can partly be explained by education, or the lack thereof. First and foremost, there are precious few programs nationwide in our schools which address vocational education. Douglas Greene of Skilled Trades Centers and Humberto Martinez of Construction Career Days are the only two people who leap to mind when discussing the issue of truly training young people in the trades. 

We’re not talking about wood shop, metal shop or even auto shop, which were once considered “fun” classes (but fed the trades with semi-qualified people), but a full-blown curriculum leading to tertiary education in a trade or craft. Not every student is college material. Not every student who can get into college wants to go to college. There are many students who like to work with their hands or who have an interest in the construction industry, but the powers that be consider such blue collar calling beneath their notice and tacitly (or actively) discourage it.

The European Model

Europe, by contrast, has elevated the construction trades to a level on a par with liberal arts or other schools of education. Regardless of the feckless political problems on the continent, there is pride in craft there that we have lost in the US. It’s noticeable, and it’s sad. If we in the trades specifically, and the construction industry generally, do not address this problem immediately we all will pay the price. Indeed, we are paying the price already.

Training and Quality

One of the brightest lights in trade education is apprenticeship training (in addition to the two relatively new approaches mentioned above) offered by the UA and the PHCC. Over the years, pride in craft and trade skills have been passed down to apprentices through these programs and, to their credit, the programs have turned out some outstanding journeymen. There are other trade and craft organizations, such as the Association for Construction Career Development which have programs designed to bring qualified students into the industry as well, and give them a foundation for continuing in it successfully. 

The one problem with these programs is that there simply aren’t enough of them. There isn’t a concerted effort, or drive, to locate and nurture the trade talent that the industry needs now and will need in the future. It will take a real—as opposed to halfhearted lip service—effort to get qualified and quality people involved and invested in the industry.

Be the Engine of Change

One problem with that idea is societal. Young people have become so accustomed to instant gratification that the idea of a four- or five-year apprenticeship is a huge negative. Pride in craft must be brought forward and made to mean something before the trade will get the type of commitment from apprentices that it really wants to see. Bemoaning the lack of work ethic in our younger generation does nothing to solve the problem. If we want things to change, we need to be the engines of change! 

There is a world of difference between working at a job for six months (regardless of what type of job that might be) and earning journeyman’s status after four or five years of intense education and on-the-job training. Would you want a doctor with only a few short months of education and training working on you? Of course not.

Regarding my conversation, my friend mentioned a large and well-known industrial company in the greater Phoenix area that cannot find enough welders to man the project. There are simply no qualified welders to be found. As for orbital welding, stainless and clean room welders, his comment was “good luck with that.” This is a sad commentary on the state of our trade. In these hard economic times, the opportunity is there to work, the work is out there to be had and yet there are not nearly enough qualified mechanics to get the job done.

A better way, or a different way, must be found to attract, train and maintain a quality workforce. We have the available population, we need to do a better job of getting our message out there. We need to petition our school boards and secondary schools to change the curricula and add more vocation training. We need to support apprenticeship training and encourage those young people that we come in contact with to pursue careers in the trades, and lastly we need to foster or continue to foster pride in craft. 

The Brooklyn, NY-born author is a retired third-generation master plumber. He founded Sunflower Plumbing & Heating in Shirley, N.Y., in 1975 and A Professional Commercial Plumbing Inc. in Phoenix in 1980. He holds residential, commercial, industrial and solar plumbing licenses and is certified in welding, clean rooms, polypropylene gas fusion and medical gas piping. He can be reached at [email protected].