The Appeal of Careers in the Trades
Editorial
It’s a refrain we hear all the time: the construction trades are facing a shortage of workers as retirements continue to outpace young talent entering the pipeline. Sure, jobs in carpentry, roofing, electrical, plumbing, HVAC, and more are hard work, but they also pay well and are (probably) resistant to the AI trend that many folks in the white-collar world worry could threaten their jobs.
As Sam Pomeroy, an HVAC professional and president of Climates by Pomeroy, told us in this issue, “robots won’t be doing our job anytime soon.”
But at the same time, what do surveys tell us Generation Z values in the workplace? Purpose-driven work. Communication. Opportunities for advancement. The idea that employers have their goals at heart.
And that’s where a few of the business leaders we spoke with for this month’s home improvement focus are doing things the right way.
Pomeroy has been working in his field for almost 40 years, and said he still feels like a “hero” when he can return heat to a family’s home or restore power to a business storing perishable food. That’s purpose.
Tim Drost, CEO of Window World of Western Massachusetts, talks about the robust array of apprenticeship programs his company has developed, ensuring that young people can get a foot in the door. That’s opportunity.
Both Drost and Scott Cernak, president of Western Mass Heating, Cooling & Plumbing, talk about their investments in continuing education and training, helping employees, even long-time ones, advance their careers. That’s understanding — and advancing — career goals.
The fact is, during a time of economic uncertainty, with the long-term impact of AI and automation on many jobs still very much up in the air, there is a real appeal to be made to young people that careers in the trades can be satisfying, well-paying, purposeful, and — importantly — stable. And demand for their talent is only rising.
“It’s a rewarding career,” Pomeroy told us. And companies in the trades that aren’t making an effort to apprentice, train, and mentor potential workers are missing out on an opportunity to create another form of stability: in their own workforce.
