5,000 jobs. 6-figure salary. Available immediately.

When was the last time you saw a want ad like that?

In a recent interview, Ford CEO Jim Farley said he has 5,000 open positions right now that pay $120,000 a year. And not enough skilled mechanics to fill them. 

Compare that to the median American income of just over $62,000 per year, as reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

It’s a huge opportunity for young people coming up, especially if they don’t want to be saddled with crushing debt from a traditional four-year college. And it’s one that we in the skilled trades should be shouting to the skies. 

During the interview, Farley noted that his grandfather, one of the early blue-collar employees at Ford, was able to build “a middle-class life and a future for his family,” stating that opportunities like that are available again today—with the proper training. “Take a diesel out of a Super Duty,” he said, “it takes a lot of skill. You need to know what you’re doing.”

The shortage extends far beyond the auto industry. Farley went on, “We have over a million openings in critical jobs — emergency services, trucking, factory workers, plumbers, electricians and tradesmen. It's a very serious thing. We do not have trade schools. We are not investing in educating [our] next generation …”

And there’s an even more serious aspect beyond economics: national security. “God forbid we ever get in a war,” he said. “Google's not going to be able to make the tanks and the planes. So, this is a self-defense for our country issue.” 

There are encouraging signs. Enrollment in trade schools rose 4.9% between 2020 and 2023, according to Validated Insights. Still, there’s plenty of room for more. If we, as skilled tradespeople, make young people aware of the satisfying—and lucrative—opportunities available, we can begin to fill the positions that are desperately needed.