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People act like working in a trade is the greatest job in the world. Then why do so few people want to do it then? Why doesn’t society push going into trade school rather than going into college ?
Because Big Education can't profit via student "loans".
Yearly physicals are for airline pilots. While I'd actually LIKE to see DRUG physicals for long haul truck drivers' and bus
drivers, I can't believe that, and you're not posting what state/province/canton this is required. And I seriously doubt the Teamsters would ever allow THAT.
San Antonio Texas. He had to be able to drive without needing glasses. At least that is what he told us.
People act like working in a trade is the greatest job in the world. Then why do so few people want to do it then? Why doesn’t society push going into trade school rather than going into college ?
In New York, BOCES is very popular. It's an alternative high school for the trades. It also has night classes for the general population.
Trades aren't just electricians and plumbers. I have an uncle who attended a culinary college. A friend attended college for a degree in horticulture - she's a professional gardener. Another friend attended the New York Botanical Garden florist program to become a professional florist. A cousin makes neon lights and installs them on New York City buildings.
People attending trade schools know what they are going to do. They know they will be a butcher, a baker or a candlestick maker (okay a plumber). People attending college don't necessarily know what they are going to do. Some freshmen haven't decided upon a major, never mind a profession. In a way, college is putting off making a decision.
Secondly, working in an office is a sign/mark of becoming middle class. The actual fact that a plumber makes more than an administrative assistant doesn't change the idea that the plumber is seen as lower middle class while the administrative assistant is seen as middle class.
Going to the gym is one or two hours a day max, while working in the trades is often the majority of the day doing something other than sitting. The benefit of a college education- even if it is just an AA degree, is that you can get some business/writing classes under your belt to help with the basics of having your own business. It can also help with the basics to make you learn what you need to know for a trade. As many have pointed out, practical math is pretty essential in many of these careers. It’s also good to have some basic writing skills if you start a business so you can present estimates and other proposals of work that look professional.
It might not be much harder than working out at a gym in your 20s-40s, but once you get to your 50s and 60s, it can really take a toll.
But the work not intense the whole duration. A lot of the trades are highly specialized especially the entry level positions. You do the same motions over and over until you move into a different stage of the job. Like dry wall installer, or demo crew. Demo crew probably being the funnest, and most stress relieving. Basically you wack walls with hammers, and use crowbars to wreck stuff. Who not want that job?
There are proper technique you use to minimize injury, and you alternate between left and right. In NYC, there are many high rise walk up buildings (no elevator). All materials included gallons of paint, cement bags, ceramic tile boxes etc etc have to be brought up the stairs. You carry on your shoulder, alternating sides each trip. When hauling away debris, sling over you back, alternating sides each trip. That kind of task wont last the whole day, or whole duration of project. The amount of that type of task is essentially what you do at the gym. You basically save yourself time at the gym.
But that is just construction/home improvement. Other trades are even easier. Auto mechanics are good example of an easy trade. They dont ever have to lift anything heavy. They mostly just change oil, tires, and brakes. Then there is appliance repairman. Even physically easier than auto.
In NYC and some other NEC cities, some buildings use steam boilers. The technicians that service those just clean out nozzles, change filters, install some electronic devices, gauges, a control panel etc etc. Its not physically taxing at all except breathing in the odor.
I guess it depends on how you define "a lot of math". It's all relative. I have a friend who started a journeyman electrician's program. There was algebra from the get-go. OK, this was someone without even a HS degree, but I had algebra and trig in HS, and I would have had a hard time with the material. So, go ahead and laugh. My point was, that you have to have your act together to get the journeyman's license; it's not for people who "didn't do well in school".
And fwiw, my friend had completed a basic program in electricity and appliance repair, and had a few years of experience working as an electrician in construction, so he had practical experience. That wasn't the problem.
An electrician doesn’t do anything more complex than solving a linear equation with one variable. That’s 8th grade math. You’re expected to know that before you get to High School. Forest Gump couldn’t be an electrician but the average 8th grader has the math proficiency to handle the class work and exam. You need 8th grade level of reading comprehension, too. The bar for academic proficiency is really low.
I think a major factor in the emphasis on college was the fact, that more and more employers in the 60's/70's began to require a basic college degree as a pre-requisite for employment, even office admin/secretarial jobs. People with only a HS degree were coming to be viewed as disadvantaged in seeking employment, similar to how HS drop-outs had been viewed in prior eras. The ante was being upped, so the schools tried to keep pace. That doesn't explain everything, but there definitely was that trend.
70's after the Duke Energy discrimination case.
After that, employers started to not use testing for applicants, and started to just increase the requirement via a college degree, being that a person with a college degree most likely has the intelligence and ability to learn the job, whereas before, the employer would give a test.
Why would anyone want someone who didn't do well in school to be working on their plumbing or electrical system? Those are not specialties for simpletons or the lazy. There's a lot of math involved in the electrician trade and construction in general.
Thank you! I have a lot of respect for trademen's talents and really hate when people assume they went into that profession because they weren't as intelligent as college goers. I have known so many college graduates that cannot even construct a grammatically correct sentence.
I believe the stress level and job satisfaction in trade jobs can be better than most so called office jobs.
Trades have a project or a job to get done. When they are done they can see what the did or produced. Nothing like a pretty quick visual representation of the fruits of your labor. Less politics too as the build things world has rules of nature that must be adhered too not what some boss's opinion of what is right way to do things or what to do next.
Im not saying trade jobs are easy and do not have stress. Dealing with clients has to be stressful but can be rewarding too.
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