They Bring Design to Life Everyone is unique when it comes to work. Some like to bake bread, some like to click on a computer keyboard, some like to build, remodel, and repair homes.
JUNE 9, 2023
Everyone is unique when it comes to work. Some like to bake bread, some like to click on a computer keyboard, some like to build, remodel, and repair homes. These are all skilled tasks that require training and experience. No one job is more important than any other. Any work in a home requires a combination of skilled workers, designers, someone clicking on a computer to order materials, and someone to bake our daily bread. In this Blog we will explore those who prefer to work in homes every day, the tradesperson.
America’s home service professionals, the men and women who keep our homes functioning and functional, are the backbone of our communities. Often representing truly small businesses, the impact they have on one of the biggest financial investments we make in our lives, our homes, is anything but small.
The Three Pillars of the Housing Industry
The housing industry has always been naturally divided into three different groups, or what we will call the Pillars of the Housing Industry. Each pillar is equally important and necessary, and combined they build and maintain our homes.
The first pillar includes professionals who are responsible for the overall design, management, and major elements, and includes designers, builders, architects, medical providers, etc.
The second pillar includes those who create and supply products and support services including manufacturers, suppliers, engineers, realtors, lawyers, media, etc. The third pillar are the trade specialists and are responsible for installing and bringing to life the designs envisioned by the first pillar.
The Value of a Tradesperson
The value of building tradespersons is all around us. From the pyramids of ancient Egypt to our own front doors, it takes a skilled worker to make everything fit together and work properly. Most of us know from experience that these skilled workers truly do bring designs to life. Now these professionals are learning how to make all homes Healthy, Accessible, and Safe.
Can you imagine starting with 100,000 individual parts, combining them into about 3,000 major components, then putting it all together into what we call a home, all in just a few months? Trade professionals have performed this almost miraculous task 128 million times from the ground up in the US.
Now add in over $300 billion annually in remodeling and repairs. These numbers are just in the United States. Worldwide there are over one billion homes and tradespersons were involved in every one of those homes. Trades professional impact the daily lives of almost eight billion persons.
Finding Qualified Tradespersons
In many areas licensing is required for some trades. Contact your local building department to find out who is licensed and contact those who are licensed. Probably the most common method of finding the fight tradesperson is to simply ask other workers on your job sites whom they would recommend. Always search for and choose a qualified and industry credentialed professional.
What Do Tradespersons Earn? Not enough!
In a report published in July 2020 by the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics, annual salaries for all types of U.S. workers averages about $52K, for those with only high school about $41K, and about $73K for college graduates. The average kitchen designer salary in the United States is $44,378 as of October 28, 2020 according to Salary.com.
And according to ZipRecruiter, in 2020 the average annual pay for a tradesperson in the United States is $44,464 a year. The U.S. News reported that in 2018 average salaries of over $83k for plumbers in Duluth, Minnesota, Huntington, West Virginia, Chicago, Illinois, Springfield, Illinois, and Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Industry Education Costs
Midwest Technical Institute reports that while the average cost for a four-year college is listed at $9,410 per year, most graduates end up paying around $127,000 for their degree. Of those, at least 20% graduate with more than $50,000 in debt and nearly 6% graduate from a four-year university with over $100,000 in student loan debt. They also told us the average cost of a trade school is $5K-$15K and takes between 3-18 months to complete. When I became an electrician in the early 1970’s I attended a night school program for four years. I do not remember the cost, my boss paid if I went to class every week, and yes, I never missed a class! Many tradespersons learn their tasks in the “school of hard knocks” literally!
Education for the Three Pillars
The Living In Place Institute recognized the need for professional education and credentialing for each pillar. Each Pillar receives a specialized program which helps all professionals understand why change is needed, how to network within the industry, recommends specific changes, helps us learn how to discuss change with our clients, and guides us to becoming better business persons.
Trade professionals demonstrate their commitment to excellence by receiving a one-of-a-kind credential called, Home Accessibility Trade Specialist™, or, HATS™. Classes are all pre-recorded and watched in the comfort of their home as their schedules allow. Each graduate becomes a Lifetime Member of the Living In Place Institute. As an Active Member, they have access to special networking forums live-on-line, and continue to learn new ideas!
Time to Celebrate!
In my 25+ years in the building industry, there has been a continuing discussion about not enough tradespersons. This will always be true. I have seen many programs come and go with varying degrees of success, usually encouraging persons to join the trades. But I have seen too few programs that start with elevating the respect level of current trades professionals, both within the industry and to the general public, and provide a bigger goal for those entering the trades. Unfortunately, the general opinion of tradespersons is that they are uneducated and lazy.
Nothing could be farther from the truth. “It’s important that people going into artisan work, for all of its camaraderie and job fulfillment satisfaction, know that it’s still fair-weather work. Little or no sick leave, typically with no lifetime guarantees or pension,” says Llewellyn King, a world-renowned journalist. Using the phrase Mr. King coined years ago, “Now it is time to break through the “Mortar Board Ceiling.”
Now Spread the Word!
Now, it is time to recognize and praise these professionals of the housing industry.
We at the Living In Place Institute are pleased to announce our newest education program, the Home Accessibility Trade Specialist™ (HATS™). This program has been created, reviewed, and approved by industry experts and is now available and recommended for all tradespersons.