A few nights a week at College of the Desert, students pick up tools and learn a trade.

This night, its HVAC, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning, one of the many trades that’s seeing a national shortage in skilled workers.

“HVAC, welding, truck drivers, we do have a pretty big shortage of them,” said COD HVAC student Landon Kuykendall. Kuykendall sees the demand for skilled labor workers and is hoping to cash in on a career in trades

“I went with this, not to lie to you, for the money,” he said. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics the median annual wage for HVAC workers was almost $52,000 in 2022. The 10-year job outlook is 6 percent, which is projected to grow faster than the average for all occupations.

“I went to Nebraska, I went to Texas, I went to Arizona and they’re all dealing with the same issue of skilled labor,” said Ramiro Galicia, P.E., CXA, a COD HAVE/ENERGY professor. “It is a problem across the nation.”

Galicia says older trade workers are retiring and that not enough young people are trained to take their jobs. He added that shortage could mean big paychecks for qualified workers.

“I have plenty of colleagues and friends that are still in the industry and none of them that I know of, after at least eight years of experience, none of them are making less than $150,000,” he said.

Other college staff agree with Galica. “The reality is these are really good jobs. These are good jobs at good wages,” said David Brady, a public policy professor at the University of California Riverside.

“The pay is pretty high compared to especially the other alternatives for those that don’t have a 4-year degree.”

Brady says about two thirds of young people are not going to get 4-year college degrees. He added that studying trades is solid pathway for people to get their careers established.

“We developed this myth here in the United States that everybody has to go to a four-year college and that’s probably not going to be the best route for a lot of
young people,” he said.

At College of the Desert, obtaining a trade certification can take a few months to a few years.

For Kuykendall, learning the tools of the trade can help build a better life for him and his family. “I am very excited for my future and what I can do for my kids in the future,” he said.

This story was written and reported by Kai Beech.

College of the Desert Offering Trade Certification Among Labor Shortage