Need For Electricians

Poor Richard Saunders said:
I believe most electricians are licensed through an apprentice and journeyman program.

This is my understanding of the system off the top of my head.
An apprentice can do work under the supervision of a journeyman. No experience required to be licensed as an apprentice. Once they have achieved a certain period of time and experience they can take the test to become a journeyman.
Journeymen electricians can do most work without supervision but work under a master electrician. After a certain period of time and experience they can test to become master electricians.
Master electricians are the ones that can design electrical systems and pull permits for work.

One can become eligible to be licensed as a master electrician without work experience if you complete a degree in electrical engineering.
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Yeah, that’s exactly how it’s done.
 
Callinectes said:
Here’s a partial list of what an unlicensed person CAN do in their own home electrically. This is only Florida.

1. Change a light bulb
2. Change an electrical outlet cover
3. Set up a home entertainment system as long as wire and cable don’t run in the walls
4. Set up a wireless computer network
5. Hang a flat screen TV on a wall

That’s about it. Everything else requires a licensed electrician, but not a college degree. If we’re ever going to be the Jetsons, we need electrical engineers to design and develop all the geegaws and doodads that make the magic happen, and qualified professional electricians to install them. And as the technology grows, we’ll need continuing education for those technicians. We need MORE than 80,000 electricians, and we damn sure DON’T need 87,000 new f’ing IRS agents.
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So..I can't replace my flourescents with LEDs unless it's a licensed electrician?
 
cawacko said:
A lot of talk in the real estate industry about the decarbonization of buildings to support sustainability and to deal with climate change. This (portion of the) article talks about the need for more (skilled) electricians to do the work necessary. I'm not real familiar with the electrician industry but doing a google search it states a college degree is not necessary to be an electrician. For those in the know is that true? And to be a skilled electrician, as opposed to a regular run of the mill electrician I guess, is a college degree required?

I guess there is an element of snark here, but also a legitimate question. We mock those who don't go to college and who support sending people to trade school but can trade schools produce the needed skilled electricians or will more future electricians need to go to college?




Are neutral-use building concepts a glimpse of real estate’s future?

Maybe I should’ve been an electrician instead of a writer. The electrification of building systems is undoubtedly crucial for real estate decarbonization. One challenge of this is the huge demand for electricity that will strain the grid. But another challenge will be a shortage of skilled electricians. Like construction workers, electricians tend to be older and close to retirement. The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates there will be roughly 80,000 new electrician openings soon. Funds from the Inflation Reduction Act will chip into job training, but many say it’s not even close to what’s needed. Commercial building owners will need to keep an eye on this. If the nation wants to electrify the economy and real estate, a multi-pronged effort to recruit, train, and pay good wages to young electricians must be a top priority – sooner rather than later.
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To do the basics, a college degree isn't needed. To become a master electrician, you need a minimum of two years of college related to the job. IBEW apprenticeships require this, for example. To really be good at it, particularly at the commercial and industrial level, you need pretty good levels of skill in computers and electronics as well.
For example, it's really hard to find classes teaching industrial controls. If you are doing industrial electrical work, this is a must have skill set. You need to know how to troubleshoot and program industrial controllers using ladder logic for example. You need to know how to set up and calibrate PID controllers.
 
cawacko said:
Where do you see the most electricians coming from? Is it a career you get into when you're young or any idea if people in say their 30's decide they want a career switch to become an electrician?

At job fairs at Universities (if those still exist) would an electrical firm send recruiters? Or are they more likely to focus on those who go to (electrical) trade school?
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I can tell you this: They aren't coming from the masses illegally crossing our border.
 
T. A. Gardner said:
To do the basics, a college degree isn't needed. To become a master electrician, you need a minimum of two years of college related to the job. IBEW apprenticeships require this, for example. To really be good at it, particularly at the commercial and industrial level, you need pretty good levels of skill in computers and electronics as well.
For example, it's really hard to find classes teaching industrial controls. If you are doing industrial electrical work, this is a must have skill set. You need to know how to troubleshoot and program industrial controllers using ladder logic for example. You need to know how to set up and calibrate PID controllers.
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Are these classes you speak only found in Universities? Or do trade schools teach them? Or some certificate programs?
 
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