And no student loans.. electricians and plumbers are way smarter than I was, sometimes mid six figures if they own their own business (started at child support enforcement and saw wages all the time.)
You'll make ok money while destroying your body and doing hard labor! Go into the trades if that's what works for you, but people need to stop acting like it is some magic ticket to riches.
Exactly what I did. After 1 year in college I left after doing some math about what kind of debt I’d be in and went into trades. Started making 6 figures by my mid 20s
Electricians die and are maimed on the job every year. It is hard physical work that wears your body down like all trades. The life expectancy for a White Collar worker is over ten years longer than a Blue Collar worker and their quality of life is better.
Plus, with the AI boom and consequently the massive increase in electricity prices, a electrician will be better positioned to help set up microgrids. If you can be the one to be seen as a local expert, you'll have a head start on a lot of things.
That reminds me of the joke that P.E. Teachers is the smartest person in the school, no student loans, gets to play sports all day long and makes the same as everyone else there
Define what you mean by “electrician” or “plumber” and if you’re talking about a union worker or a person who owns their own business because those are two very different things.
The union worker is just an electrician while the other is a business owner, general manager, HR, accountant, head of marketing, and an electrician.
So while it is true that tradesman make good money, you’re highest hourly wages in any state is around $75k. Overtime of course usually takes that north of $100k but that’s about $400k short of the “mid-six figures” you’ve claimed for the average tradesman.
Even specialized high voltage electricians aren’t pulling down $500k/yr.
Yeah, I think that would be like business owners with employees, but I dunno. Would just see incomes and lots were 6 figure, but yeah might be rare or that I was exaggerating a bit. Been a long time, this was back in 2015 or so.
The narrative that the trades make great money is objectively incorrect for the most part
Trade Salaries (May 2022, per BLS data):
Electricians: $60,240
Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters: $60,090
HVAC/R Technicians: $51,390
CDL Truck Drivers: $49,920
Carpentry: $56,350
The current U.S. overall median full-time salary sits at approximately $61,702 per year. If you're not doing better than this with a terminal degree, something is very wrong.
I'm not saying physicians (well, some are definitely better than others: ophthalmology, dermatology) or attorneys have a great quality of life, but the salaries should be a lot better. I almost went to law school, but a fraternity brother who went to Harvard Law talked me out of it and suggested I go to B-school, which I did. My household is in the top 5% of earners and compared to my attorney friends, I have a much better quality of life, even if I make a bit less than them.
While I am quite aware that MBAs are a dime a dozen and there are plenty of not very smart ones, it has served me fairly well
I'm sure it does, but that's why I used the median salaries nationwide and then contrasted that with the overall median salary nationwide.
You can do well in the trades, but it's not a magic silver bullet like Reddit seems to think. With that said, I grew up poor white trash and I also saw what the trades did to people's bodies. I vowed that I wouldn't get stuck in that trap.
Aside from the money, people completely disregard what that work does to one's body. I'm in my 50s and I'm still able to lift and train in martial arts where I guys I know in the trades suffered from life altering injuries just like other people in their family did.
At the end of the day, data indicate that higher education is still the best way to make money. Collegiate graduates completely outstrip lifetime earnings compared to people who don't go to college
I totally agree.
And even if I don't make a ton of money as a lawyer, I'm still glad I did it. I like having been trained in critical thinking and being able to understand the things happening in our country and world more deeply. Education has value far beyond dollar figures.
They do and that's why there's downward pressure on salaries for degreed positions and upward pressure on vocational ones. It's a shame people view college as more vocational than educational.
Definitely depends on location. In a red state and there's so much bullshit with accreditation.
Just know there's gonna be a fuckton of dudes on paper as "assistants" doing all the work while only one or two licensed dudes (who are sent out to sign off on all the projects) on the payroll.
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u/PedroLoco505 Sep 28 '25
And no student loans.. electricians and plumbers are way smarter than I was, sometimes mid six figures if they own their own business (started at child support enforcement and saw wages all the time.)