You have no control over the weather outside, but you can usually decide your indoor climate. HVAC technology lets you set a specific temperature and enjoy it consistently if your system works correctly. The many technicians working in the HVAC industry are the professionals keeping your system running well or fixing it when something goes wrong. As spring rolls into summer, you might soon deal with one at home. While you trust HVAC technicians to know the ins and outs of air conditioning, there are a few facts that you should know about them.
They’re Not All Men
It’s no secret that men dominate the HVAC industry, but the number of women in the technician ranks is growing yearly. Scholarships and educational pushes have helped make women more interested in trade skills as students. Learning math and science in school helps prepare them for the problem-solving and critical-thinking skills necessary in this industry. Not only are the number of women technicians growing but so is the number of woman-owned HVAC businesses. Women are still just a fraction of the HVAC workforce, but that fraction is getting bigger.
There Aren’t Enough of Them
The HVAC industry is suffering the same labor shortages many other trades are. Many technicians are retiring or close to it, and the number of those leaving the industry far outweighs the number of new technicians joining it. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates the industry to grow more than 13% over the current decade. Given the high demand, median technician wages are more than $45,000 yearly. Many technicians who pay for the education necessary to join the industry have little trouble paying it back once they start working.
HVAC Technicians Are All Kinds of Flexible
HVAC technicians are flexible professionals when it comes to servicing HVAC systems. First of all, they might have to practice scheduling flexibility. If they work for a business that offers emergency services, especially evenings and weekends, they might have to stay available for house calls at all hours of day or night. Some physical flexibility is also required. Your air conditioning equipment might be nestled into tight spaces, including ductwork, vents, and registers. Space might also be tight around your outside unit, and technicians need to be able to squeeze into tight spots to access what needs diagnosing, cleaning, and fixing. This is all in addition to the fact that HVAC technicians must be skilled in many different crafts and generations of equipment they might work with.
It’s great when everyone knows these things about HVAC technicians. At Upland Services, we also want residents of the Joplin, MO area to know who to contact for any HVAC services they might need.
