PBS NewsHour: after decades of pushing bachelor’s degrees, U.S. needs tradespeople
Even PBS NewsHour is talking about the labor shortage in skilled trades like HVAC/R.
The shortage has been an ever-growing problem for contractors and technical colleges alike and is starting to get more mainstream news coverage, with articles on the subject published by The Washington Post, The New York Times, and Forbes, to name a few.
PBS Newshour in particular delves into a key reason for the shortage: the over-emphasis on a 4-year college degree and an office job as the only way to achieve a comfortable, middle-class lifestyle.
Several people impacted by this problem shared their experiences, including a recent high school graduate named Derrick Roberson.
“All throughout high school, they made it sound like going to college was our only option,” he said. “After you go to college, where do you go? It can open doors for you, but not as much as they make it seem.”