Sunday, August 01, 2004
As stated earlier, my advice to any parent with kids bound for high school would be to start directing them towards vocational training. At the very least, encourage them to pursue the trades as a back-up plan to the $160K of primarily wasted money that goes toward today's undergraduate college experience and lands far too many graduates serving tables (in a down economy) or making $45K-75K starting salary a year (not bad but not great either). If they do land a job, god forbid it is an outsourceable (not a word, I know) one. Or woe if you are not at the top of the pack. A lay-off at the first downturn and bye, bye....
Compare the prospects of most college grads to the plumbing guys I've been dealing with lately to 1) convert from oil to gas 2) bring gas into my kitchen 3) re-connect an outdoor water spigot and 4) re-route an unsightly pipe protruding from a ceiling that had been simply boxed in with wood by someone who obviously had no aesthetic sensibilities. The plumber has job security and earning potential to make a UPenn business grad salivate. Let's break this down. None of the afore mentioned projects can be undertaken by the layman. Nor can they be outsourced. Granted everything mentioned above is optional so one could argue that in economically shaky times, these plumbers would be sitting around twiddling their thumbs. Wrong. If anything prompts you to dial the first plumber in the telephone book without the slightest thought to cost it's a backed up toilet. Or sink. Or a frozen pipe.
Own a plumbing company and you are bringing in a million dollars a year. Work for a plumbing company and you are the highest paid tradesman in the industry. The adorable plumber squeezed into the crawl space below my California house trying to find a water pipe that leads outside just bought a house up the road from our old house for $479K. I bet he isn't a day past thirty. For those parents who would wrinkle their noses at the thought of their 'genuis' child becoming a plumber, think of it this way: after depositing his soggy but SUBSTANTIAL paycheck into the bank on the way home, all the plumber then needs is a good hot shower to wash off all the gunk. But he's a plumber of course -- so no problem...
Still not convinced? Ok then think of it this way: unless we start giving some real incentives to businesses to keep jobs here in the States, my predicition is that the plumbing trade will become an even more lucrative trade as thousands of basements are retro-fitted with bathrooms and kitchenettes to accomodate the young adults forced back to their parents' homes because they simply can't find a job. I don't know about you but...
Compare the prospects of most college grads to the plumbing guys I've been dealing with lately to 1) convert from oil to gas 2) bring gas into my kitchen 3) re-connect an outdoor water spigot and 4) re-route an unsightly pipe protruding from a ceiling that had been simply boxed in with wood by someone who obviously had no aesthetic sensibilities. The plumber has job security and earning potential to make a UPenn business grad salivate. Let's break this down. None of the afore mentioned projects can be undertaken by the layman. Nor can they be outsourced. Granted everything mentioned above is optional so one could argue that in economically shaky times, these plumbers would be sitting around twiddling their thumbs. Wrong. If anything prompts you to dial the first plumber in the telephone book without the slightest thought to cost it's a backed up toilet. Or sink. Or a frozen pipe.
Own a plumbing company and you are bringing in a million dollars a year. Work for a plumbing company and you are the highest paid tradesman in the industry. The adorable plumber squeezed into the crawl space below my California house trying to find a water pipe that leads outside just bought a house up the road from our old house for $479K. I bet he isn't a day past thirty. For those parents who would wrinkle their noses at the thought of their 'genuis' child becoming a plumber, think of it this way: after depositing his soggy but SUBSTANTIAL paycheck into the bank on the way home, all the plumber then needs is a good hot shower to wash off all the gunk. But he's a plumber of course -- so no problem...
Still not convinced? Ok then think of it this way: unless we start giving some real incentives to businesses to keep jobs here in the States, my predicition is that the plumbing trade will become an even more lucrative trade as thousands of basements are retro-fitted with bathrooms and kitchenettes to accomodate the young adults forced back to their parents' homes because they simply can't find a job. I don't know about you but...
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