High School to High Paid in the Trades

By / Natalie Bruckner

Finally, young talent is beginning to see the sheet metal industry for what it is: an extremely fulfilling and gainful career. Part of that is exposure to the reality of what the job entails, and part of it is discovering that misconceptions about the trades are just that—misconceptions.

“Sheet metal is an amazing career with so many benefits, and yet many misconceptions,” says Alejandra Rios, firstyear apprentice with Washington-based Hermanson Company. “One of the biggest misconceptions that I came in with was that I couldn’t make mistakes. What I quickly discovered was that if you ask for help, nobody is going to tell you no. Even working in the field, you get told everybody is really rough and tough, but it’s never like that.”

Rios got her first taste of the trades during high school metal work class, and she knew right away this was the career path for her. Upon graduation, and after participating in the Heavy Metal Summer Experience (HMSE) program, she was accepted into the Local 66 apprenticeship program, starting in September 2022.

The opportunity to “learn and earn” appealed to Rios. “For economic reasons, I didn’t feel that I could pursue a career in college,” she says. “I weighed my options and it made sense on so many levels. I wouldn’t say it’s all about earning, but that is a benefit. Apprentices get paid to go to school, and they leave as journeypersons with no debt. That’s incredibly beneficial for people in situations like mine.”

With the total average student loan debt in the United States at approximately $40,000 and the rising cost of living, it’s no surprise young people are attracted to the “learn and earn” model. Tori Wilson, apprentice at T.H. Martin, Inc., is one of them and says it is important to create greater awareness of this component.

“Learn and earn is not something many of my peers are aware of,” she says. “When we graduated, most of my friends went to college because further education was expected of them. Some now have stable jobs, but a lot are still looking, and all of them are having to pay off debt. That’s not something I wanted to do.”

While earning an instant wage and the additional benefits, like a pension, appealed to Wilson, the learning element swung the deal. “I’m someone who loves learning new things, and the industry is great at catering to that,” she says. “Not only do you get paid to go to school, but also, every day you learn something new. I started my full-time apprenticeship back in 2018 and started working at T.H. Martin. I was initially in the shop, then in the field, and now in the office, where I am learning estimating. After four years, I still get excited to come into work every day.”

Tom Martin, owner of T.H. Martin, and Chris Howard, superintendent at Hermanson, agree that attracting applicants like Rios and Wilson takes a great deal of commitment.

“Everyone is in recruiting mode right now,” Martin says. “We are competing with truck driving companies, the military, even Chic-fil-A, which is offering $18 to $20 an hour. You have to be aggressive in your recruiting and go after people.”

While social media is a popular recruitment tool, Rios and Wilson are hesitant about this method. They agree that it is beneficial as a marketing tool to showcase the industry, but also they believe that the best way to target young talent is “the old fashioned way.”

“Snapchat and other platforms are okay, but going into schools and selling it as a career is more effective,” Rios says. “In high school, there is still this view of what a blue collar worker is and what a laborer is, and there isn’t much of a divide between those views.”

Wilson agrees, adding, “My generation and those younger than me don’t really use Facebook. Instead, offering optional classes at school where you can get an insight into the realities of the trade or having young people going into the schools and talking about the trade are great ways educate younger people.”

Jeff Reinhardt, executive administrator at Western Washington Sheet Metal JATC, agrees that this team effort by labor and management to deliver face-to-face communication is helping them source the best candidates. “Recruiting is a big part of what we do at the apprenticeship,” he says. “We have developed relationships with a lot of the high schools and skills centers in Western Washington, and because of that, we get invited to their career fairs and classes where we can have conversations with students.”

T.H. Martin and Hermanson also use this strategy, alongside their labor partners. Howard says the avenues that have been effective for Hermanson include ANEW, a local pre-apprenticeship program in the Puget Sound region of Washington state, looking at recruits from the HMSE, and bringing people into the material handling program from personal referrals.

“From ANEW and HMSE, I write letters of recommendation to the JATC asking that interested participants be considered for the apprenticeship program,” Howard says. “This way, they get to learn the industry before committing to the apprenticeship program. Not only do we vet the person, but the person can vet the industry and make sure it is what they would like to do as a career. This has been highly effective in bringing in talent that actually completes the full five-year program.”

Reinhardt says meeting with students in the classroom is a more comfortable environment for students, and this opens up conversations and questions that aren’t usually asked at career fairs. “It also gives the opportunity to talk to the career and technical education teachers about what we are looking for in an apprentice, and they help guide appropriate students to us,” he adds.

Most of T.H. Martin’s company’s recruitment is done working closely with Local 33. “We share tasks like updating

“We are starting to see a change in how the trades and apprenticeship is viewed in our area. People are starting to view the trades for what it is—a true career opportunity.” the website, guiding new apprentices to links they can use to sign up to the Local, and collaborating on school-to-work programs,” Martin says. “It helps to work with your labor partners because when you find an individual, you can bring them in and everyone is buying into the process.”

Another powerful strategy is involving existing employees to identify poissible recuirts and following up on every recommendation. “We are constantly asking our field forepersons and project management team to identify young men and women working in the field who are potential leaders,” Martin says. “Companies struggling to attract young talent should do the same and ensure they are evaluating their apprentices quarterly or semi-annually to work on improving what they need, where they are lacking, and discovering who wants the opportunity for advancement.”

Howard agrees, adding that “mentoring and understanding apprentices’ goals is also important to retention of young talent.” Communication, afterall, is the key to success, no matter what age.

Although the numbers indicate recruitment efforts must continue, and in some areas strengthen, contractors and Locals who work together are seeing the results of their efforts.

“We are starting to see a change in how the trades and apprenticeship is viewed in our area,” Reinhardt says. “People are starting to view the trades for what it is—a true career opportunity.” ▪

Natalie is an award-winning writer who has worked in the United Kingdom, Germany, Spain, the United States, and Canada. She has more than 23 years experience as a journalist, editor, and brand builder, specializing in construction and transportation.