A leading Canadian automotive consulting firm has downplayed industry concerns that the average age of service technicians is getting precariously high.
In a recent email newsletter, DesRosiers Automotive Consulting noted that an “oft-cited concern in the automotive industry has been the age of automotive service technicians.”
Specifically, industry watchers are worried a tide of retirements could leave the aftermarket even more desperate for skilled labour than it already is.
But according to Statistics Canada data, older service techs within retiring age (60 years old or over) account for just 9.4% of individuals in this field. In fact, the largest cohort of technicians are 20- to 29-year-olds, who make up some 23.3% of total service technicians.
“The age distribution for automotive service technicians shows reasonable balance,” the firm concludes.
Statistics Canada does, however, bear out a common observation of just how male-centric the industry is.
According to 2016 data, only 2.1% of automotive service technicians are female.
Approximately 156,000 workers fell under the National Occupational Classification (NOC) 7321 ‘automotive service technicians, truck and bus mechanics, and mechanical repairers’ classification. Not surprisingly, the classification is 97.9% males.
Median income for males under this classification settled at $46,109 against $33,445 for females.
Leave a Reply