Why You Should Care About The Auto Technician Shortage

The official U.S. unemployment rate is the lowest it’s been since the 1960s. And while this is undoubtedly cause for celebration, it also means that the job market is getting a little tighter. In fact, the Wall Street Journal reported in early June that the number of job openings in America has surpassed the number of unemployed workers by the largest margin in history. And while every industry currently feels the squeeze, it’s safe to say that the trades have been fighting this battle for a while now—with the automotive sector taking one of the hardest hits.

For years, employment stats have continued to report a rapidly growing auto technician shortage. And for years, the issue has remained unresolved.

Regardless of where you place the blame, the situation is alarming and worth your attention. Why? Because as a tinkerer, an enthusiast, or just a regular ol’ daily driver, you’ll be feeling the pain (if you aren’t already) of a continually dwindling skills gap. Longer wait times, increased prices, and poor customer service are just the tip of the iceberg. As the talent pool shrinks and vehicles get increasingly more complex, the best and brightest are either looking elsewhere for better opportunities or being poached by other industries.

And then who’s left to fix your car?

Let’s Look at Some Numbers

The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics says that automotive service professions are expected to grow an of average six percent over the next 10 years, adding approximately 46,000 new jobs to the pool. Makes sense, right? With a new model seemingly being released every time you turn around, EVs hitting the mainstream, and self-driving cars looming on the horizon, we need auto technicians.

The problem? When you factor in all the positions that will be vacated as employees retire or change fields, the government predicts that the transportation industry will need an average of 76,000 new automotive technicians each year to fill in those gaps. A number that’s considered conservative by groups like the TechForce Foundation, whose Transportation Technician Supply & Demand Report showed higher annual demand estimates.

That’s a lot of people.

And it’s not just about having bodies in the shop. Today’s vehicles are difficult to diagnose, let alone repair. Most require expensive computerized equipment or specialty tools. At the very least, they require a skilled problem solver comfortable using both technological and mechanical know-how to get the job done.

“Vehicle diagnostics and the tools are just crazy, and they continue to change so incredibly fast,” says Kameron McConchie, co-owner of Generations Auto Repair in Ballston Spa, NY. “I never thought the vehicles would be as advanced as they are right now and since I feel like 1 in every 50 cars up here is a Tesla, I imagine we don’t see the vehicle complexities slowing down,” he adds. “Yet having skilled technicians on staff is like a dying breed.”

The National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) reports that in 2017, dealerships wrote over 316 million repair orders, with service and parts sales exceeding $114 billion. That’s over 12% of total revenue! It’s also proof that service departments spell significant profits for dealerships. (Especially as car buying becomes more competitive, resulting in slashed prices and thinner margins.)

But with more cars on the road and less technicians in the bays, an already-strained workforce is feeling the heat. And when employees have to do more work in less time, you know what happens: inferior results and upset customers.

Who’s to Blame for the Auto Technician Shortage?

Well, that depends on who you ask. Analysts will argue that trade jobs in general are lacking. High school programs are disappearing and counselors continue to push 4-year college degrees, resulting in a nasty little stigma around trade work. The media likes to blame those lazy, entitled, and disinterested millennials. “Nobody wants to work anymore!” But if you ask automotive technicians, as well as the shop owners and dealerships in charge of hiring them, much of the blame falls on the industry itself.

From an outdated flat-rate pay system and high personal investment for tools and certifications, to unrealistic warranty repair times and a serious disconnect between management and technicians, the auto industry has some skeletons in its closet that are overdue to be addressed. But it’s not just the manufacturers and dealerships who need to spend a little time looking inward. The very programs tasked with educating these enterprising new recruits aren’t innocent, either. Dangling salary projections of $100k and greater for master technician status is downright slimy when the U.S. Department of Labor places the median annual wage for automotive service technicians and mechanics closer to $40k.

Now, that’s not to say you can’t make really good money working as a mechanic. (As we said, that’s the median salary—50% of people made more than $40,000 last year.) It’s also not meant to imply that everyone you meet in the field is jaded and miserable. But spend some time in an online comments section—I know, I know. Hell is a comments section. But spend some time reading comments on an article about the auto technician shortage and you’re bound to find a general sense of malaise.

It’s Not All Doom & Gloom

Despite the bad press though, thousands of people still willingly choose this work every day. Mechanics by trade but enthusiasts by heart, many enter this field because of a passion for all things automotive. Do what you love, they say, and you’ll never work a day in your life! 

Look, as the future of driving changes, society needs more tech-savvy minds to keep it all in motion—meaning the jobs are there for the taking. But as Baby Boomers retire and Gen Xers burn out, dealerships and shops are tasked with appealing to a new-age Millennial workforce that has been raised to believe every single negative bit of nonsense about trade work. (Please. Ask me how my Liberal Arts degree and freelancer salary compares to my friend’s in HVAC. I dare you.)

“The best way to sell a truck is to talk about how lousy a competitor is … The best way to really promote college hard, is to talk about how subordinate all the other opportunities are,” said Mike Rowe of Dirty Jobs fame in a 2013 interview with Reason TV.

As a longtime proponent of the trades, Rowe asserts that a dangerous PR campaign has taken root in America’s schools. Constructing a narrative that students must aspire to Work Smart, Not Hard, is “egregious,” in his words. Today, the MikeRoweWORKS Foundation sells posters stating, “Work Smart AND Hard,” and spends its time affirmatively rewarding the people who are willing to do just that, through scholarships and employment services.

What Can YOU Do?

According to news outlet NPR, as politicians argue over the dismal state of our country’s roads and bridges, “The U.S. Department of Education reports that there will be 68% more job openings in infrastructure-related fields in the next five years than there are people training to fill them.”

Sixty-eight percent. If you think an auto technician shortage is scary, imagine what happens when we don’t have people to fix the roads, let alone the cars.

Despite alarm bells and millions of dollars in funding, interest in technical programs remains low. Convincing young people (and perhaps more importantly, their parents) that trade work is not only financially rewarding but also self-fulfilling, continues to be a struggle. However, as student loan debt continues to balloon in this country (last clocked at a walloping $1.5 trillion, according to Federal Reserve data), one has to believe that young graduates and students will begin to see the bright—and lucrative—light at the end of the trade job tunnel.

So, how can you help combat the auto technician shortage? Well, first, show a little more patience and compassion next time you’re at a service center. And second, tune in to Part 2 of our tech coverage. We’ll be looking a little closer at what the manufacturers and dealerships can do to take accountability and how you can help spread awareness, donate to the right causes, and ensure the industry’s brain drain comes to an end.