Is Working as a HVACR Tech Becoming Glamorous?

It would appear that becoming an HVAC tech is in vogue. It’s about time and the industry is better for it. 

Recent news coverage suggests this. Several headlines about joining the trades and gaining cachet value are long overdue, as a career in any of the trades have been overlooked for years. For as long as I can remember, the media has plied us with stories about needing a college degree if you ever hoped to succeed, especially from a financial perspective. The implication was that if you didn’t go to college, there was no way you could succeed.

I’m sensing a shift, especially when I read an article in the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) urging people to have a positive and even enthusiastic view of the trades, particularly HVAC. I know things are starting to change.

The article “Why I Skipped College to be an HVAC Tech” contained the subhead “I’m Thinking About a Mortgage Instead of College Loans.”  What a surprise to see how a young man penned a well-written Op-Ed on why he was foregoing college and going into the trades.

I wondered if it was a one-shot effort. Then I read a full-page Philadelphia Inquirer article titled “He Skipped College. He’s On His Way to $175,000 a Year.” This article was about a commercial HVAC apprentice who expects to earn major money early in his career.

I haven’t conducted any research to see how widespread this shift is, but anecdotally, I hear frequently that more and more young people are foregoing college and the military and are giving the trades a serious look. As I’ve discussed, pursuing higher education is strongly correlated with a higher income, and recent research shows that far too many college degrees and majors don't pay off in the long run.

A recent study from the Burning Glass Institute and the Strada Institute for the Future of Work revealed this fact earlier in 2024, along with other troubling statistics that paint a bleak picture for future college students. While 52% of college graduates work in jobs that don't require higher education, 75% remain in this situation for a full decade after college.

 The above mentioned are the driving forces that point some people toward a different educational model. (According to the U.S. Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), the average total cost of attendance for first-time, full-time undergraduate students in the 2022-2023 academic year was about $30,031 per year.

The cost of a college education and lack of job opportunities has the makings of a public relations issue for higher education. The negative view of the trades as a career is diminishing. Make no mistake about it: The HVAC industry needs techs. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the HVAC industry is short one in four technicians, and if this trend continues, that will grow to one out of two by 2027. The need is there, and the opportunity is there, and it’s my belief that opinions and attitudes are changing. 

Now is the time to increase your effort to gain stability for your business with a view to the next five or 10 years. Capitalize on the current wave popularity and partner with trade schools or professional organizations like Explore the Trades. (We featured their executive director, Kate Cinnamo, in our 20 Questions column in July.)  

We will continue to publish articles to help you recruit and retain your staff and spark a few ideas. But like many things in life, starting can be difficult, and now is the time to develop a short- and long-term recruitment plan. 

…this isn’t the end of the story. The two articles I previously mentioned generated a significant response. The Philadelphia tech story drew 440 comments, and the first-person article written by the tech in the WSJ garnered 778 comments. These are very impressive numbers. Obviously, these articles touched a nerve. 

At the end of the day, some find a challenge and fulfillment in an occupation that requires a degree of physicality. Others would rather sit on a sofa and strengthen their fingers with the TV remote control. 

Let’s be blunt. For decades, parents, guidance counselors and the media regarded a trades career as an afterthought. There’s a shift in direction, and this is the first time in a long time to connect with those who are receptive to the new path, aren’t afraid (dare I say, welcome) of a bit of hard work, want to make a comfortable living and start their working career without crushing debt. This is the perfect moment to search for new talent with a favorable prevailing wind.