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Trades & Craftsmanship

Skills, Resilience & Life Mastery › Trades & Craftsmanship

This page covers skilled trade work as paid work: what four trades pay and how many openings federal projections show, what drives construction labor demand, what registered apprenticeship involves and what it can cost, and what California requires before a person can hold a contractor’s license. It sits under Skills, Resilience & Life Mastery because a trade is a practical skill set, and it connects to Systems, Wealth & Technology because trade work has a federal wage record. One GoldBlock co-founder works in water-well drilling under a licensed operator; that is field experience, not a license.

What the work pays

The figures below are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook, with May 2025 wage data and projections for 2025 to 2035 (pages last modified August 27, 2026, read 2026-10-19).

  • Electricians: median wage $63,190 per year ($30.38 per hour); employment “projected to grow 9 percent from 2025 to 2035”; “About 72,700 openings for electricians are projected each year, on average, over the decade.”
  • Plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters: median wage $63,800 per year ($30.67 per hour); “projected to grow 7 percent from 2025 to 2035, much faster than the average for all occupations”; about 42,000 openings a year.
  • HVAC mechanics and installers: median wage $61,010 per year ($29.33 per hour); projected to grow 11 percent, “much faster than the average for all occupations”; about 40,600 openings a year.
  • Welders, cutters, solderers, and brazers: median wage $53,750 per year ($25.84 per hour); “projected to grow 2 percent from 2025 to 2035”; about 40,300 openings a year. BLS adds: “However, automation in manufacturing may limit overall demand for these workers.”

BLS defines the median: “The median wage is the wage at which half the workers in an occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less.” The spread around it is wide. For electricians in May 2025, the lowest 10 percent earned less than $42,640 and the highest 10 percent more than $108,510 (BLS, Electricians, Pay).

Construction labor demand

Associated Builders and Contractors estimated that the construction industry needs to attract “an estimated 349,000 net new workers” in 2026, and its chief economist, Anirban Basu, said “a majority of new worker demand in 2026 will be attributable to retirement rather than increased demand for construction services” (Construction Dive, January 28, 2026).

Getting paid while you learn

A registered apprenticeship is a paid job with on-the-job training and related instruction. The U.S. Government Accountability Office lists “the potential to avoid taking on student loan debt” among the benefits of registered apprenticeship and says the programs “produce little student debt” (GAO-25-107040). GAO reports that in fiscal year 2024 about 940,000 workers participated in registered apprenticeship programs, and that completers who exited between April 2022 and March 2023 earned average annual wages of about $80,000 in their first year after exiting.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Apprenticeship.gov reports “800,000+” apprentices annually, an average starting salary of “$86K” (“Average starting salary after an apprentice completes an apprenticeship program”) and “93%” employment retention (“Percentage of apprentices who retain employment after apprenticeship completion”), with its statistics noted as “Retrieved on 12/31/2025.”

Both sets of figures describe people who completed registered programs, and they pool higher- and lower-paying occupations. Little student debt is not no cost: in one example, the minutes of the Maryland Apprenticeship and Training Council record a sponsor’s representatives stating that “apprentices are responsible for the full cost of tuition,” about $2,800 a year for member contractors, and that “employers may elect to enter into tuition reimbursement agreements with apprentices” (May 12, 2026). Tuition, fees, tools and any reimbursement terms are set by each program and are stated in its agreement.

Licensing in California

California’s Contractors State License Board (CSLB) sets the requirements for a contractor’s license. The person qualifying for the license must have, “within the ten years immediately before the filing of the application,” “at least four full years of experience at a journey level, or as a foreman, supervisor, or contractor,” and “You will need to have a $25,000 bond in place before you become licensed” (CSLB, Before Applying for the Examination). CSLB’s list of license classifications includes “C-36 - Plumbing Contractor” and “C-57 - Well Drilling Contractor” (CSLB, Licensing Classifications). Small jobs are exempt only under a narrow rule: from January 1, 2025, the minor work exemption covers projects where “the total contract price for labor, materials, and all other items on a project is less than $1,000,” and only if the work needs no permit and the person employs no one (CSLB press release, December 30, 2024; CSLB Industry Bulletin 24-07). Requirements are set by state law and change, and other states set their own; this describes the structure, not legal advice.

How this fits the rest of the system

Investing (Long-Term Wealth) covers what happens to income that is saved and invested. Online Income covers earning through digital channels, and the Systems, Wealth & Technology hub holds the rest of that pillar. Tools & Mobility and Personal Capability & Everyday Skills sit beside this page under Skills, Resilience & Life Mastery, and Human Performance & Health covers the body that physical work depends on.

GoldBlock Workshop is educational. We explain how things work and what the evidence shows. This is information, not professional advice. Some of this work carries real physical risk: follow manufacturer instructions, use proper protection, and get hands-on training or a qualified professional for anything beyond your experience.

Sources and further reading

  • U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook, “Electricians” (May 2025 wage data; 2025 to 2035 projections; last modified August 27, 2026; read 2026-10-19). Median $63,190; 9 percent growth; about 72,700 annual openings; lowest 10 percent under $42,640, highest 10 percent over $108,510; median definition.
  • U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook, “Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters” (May 2025; read 2026-10-19). Median $63,800; 7 percent growth, “much faster than the average”; about 42,000 annual openings.
  • U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook, “Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers” (May 2025; read 2026-10-19). Median $61,010; 11 percent growth, “much faster than the average”; about 40,600 annual openings.
  • U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook, “Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers” (May 2025; read 2026-10-19). Median $53,750; 2 percent growth; about 40,300 annual openings; automation in manufacturing “may limit overall demand.”
  • Associated Builders and Contractors 2026 workforce estimate, reported by Construction Dive (January 28, 2026; read 2026-10-19). 349,000 net new workers; majority of demand attributable to retirement “rather than increased demand for construction services.”
  • U.S. Government Accountability Office, “Apprenticeship: Earn-and-Learn Opportunities Can Benefit Workers and Employers” (GAO-25-107040, April 28, 2025; read 2026-10-19, entry 85). About 940,000 participants in fiscal year 2024; completers who exited April 2022 to March 2023 earned average first-year wages of about $80,000; “the potential to avoid taking on student loan debt”; “produce little student debt.”
  • U.S. Department of Labor, Apprenticeship.gov (homepage statistics “Retrieved on 12/31/2025”; read 2026-10-19). 800,000+ apprentices annually; $86K average starting salary after completion; 93 percent employment retention.
  • Maryland Department of Labor, “Maryland Apprenticeship and Training Council, Meeting Minutes, May 12, 2026” (read 2026-10-19, entry 85). I.E.C. Chesapeake program: “apprentices are responsible for the full cost of tuition”; annual tuition “approximately $2,800” for member contractors; “employers may elect to enter into tuition reimbursement agreements with apprentices.”
  • California Contractors State License Board, Before Applying for the Examination (read 2026-10-19). Four years of journey-level experience within ten years; $25,000 bond.
  • California Contractors State License Board, Licensing Classifications (read 2026-10-19). “C-36 - Plumbing Contractor”; “C-57 - Well Drilling Contractor.”
  • California Contractors State License Board, press release on AB 2622 (December 30, 2024) and Industry Bulletin 24-07 (December 31, 2024), both read 2026-10-19. Minor work exemption under $1,000 from January 1, 2025; no permit; no employees.