Quote:
Originally Posted by XDCX
I know that good techs were hard to come by even during the great recession and I think a lot of techs (both good and bad) left the business when dealerships were closing and they had to make a decision about whether they wanted to go to work for another dealership.
Additionally, and this is just an impression of mine, I wonder if there are more early retirements among techs than other jobs within the dealership. 
Being a tech can be a physically demanding job at times and as age often brings on lessened vision, reduced range of movement and arthritis I wonder if some techs switch careers in their 50s because the job becomes too difficult. |
Possibly, to the last, but I doubt they is much job switching to a career that PAYS as well for the skill. I can remember only one tech over my 50 years who left the auto repair business for a more lucrative job, and that was becoming an union aircraft tech.
I think there were a lot of departures from the business to "sit on thee ass" and shade tree mechanic (did I just hear the crunch of CASH?) for two years minimum during the unemployment extensions offered by the Democratically controlled Congress. From there, it was working back into the mechanic tech job as the skill level became a bigger demand.
The two highest skilled mechanics I had, one went, as still works for, an independent shop (top tech they have and can demand the top dollar), while the other was already 63 and went to work in a dealership as their top tech. He has now retired to his shade tree job.