Brian Huff, founder and CEO of Midwest Technical Institute, speaks with zeal regarding the present and future economic opportunities for tradespeople in Springfield and the rest of the country.
“There are 80,000 job openings in the country for electricians and only 7,000 to 8,000 are being trained right now. [The investment manager] BlackRock says there will be a need for 500,000 new electricians in the next few years,” Huff said.
Midwest Technical Institute recently began offering nine-month electrician and welding programs at the Springfield campus. “Of about 12 million skilled workers in the country, 4.8 million are 45 or older. Half are 55 or older,” he said. “For every five that are retiring, only two are replacing them. So, there’s this massive hole.”
In April, the Wall Street Journal published a story titled, “How Gen Z Is Becoming the Toolbelt Generation.” With costs at four-year colleges skyrocketing and worries about AI potentially making obsolete the kinds of jobs a college graduate can get, the WSJ pointed out that more and more young people are saying no to college and yes to schools such as MTI that teach skilled trades. Two key reasons cited are money and job security.
A 2024 survey by payroll-services provider ADP revealed statistics that would probably surprise those who consider a college degree the golden ticket to a financially secure professional life, as compared to a career in the trades. According to ADP’s research, in 2024 the median pay for licensed electricians was $62,350 and $62,970 for plumbers, pipefitters and steamfitters. The median salary of those in traditional professional services, including accounting, was $39,520.
“I don’t think people have any idea of what’s coming in the next five to10 years when it comes to construction,” said Huff, the proprietor of five other trade schools with another opening soon in Little Rock, Arkansas. “The AI-arms race is on, and the Trump administration said we’ll need to double our output of electricity to win the race. Massive data centers are being built everywhere – including one in Springfield – and there is just a massive need for electricians, welders, millwrights, pipefitters, steamfitters and HVAC technicians.”
Huff said he often tells people, “Take a look around. It all starts with the trades. Doctors, nurses and other health care professionals have no place to work until somebody builds them a hospital.”
Huff continued, “AI will become a tool for the tradesperson, but it won’t replace the tradesperson. Today’s college grad is not only worried about AI or somebody else replacing them; they’re worried the job won’t even be there. They’re turning to the trades.”
According to data from the National Student Clearinghouse, enrollment at trade schools is up about 20% in the past five years, while enrollment at public four-year institutions has increased just 2.1% during that same time frame.
“Trades were presented as a downward movement. Today, it’s an upward movement,” Huff said. “They pay really well; they are replacement-resistant and recession-resistant, for the most part. They can be affected by recessions, but the trades are usually the last to go.”
Billy Serbousek, executive vice president of the Illinois Chapter of the National Electrical Contractors Association, echoed Huff. He agreed that while more young people are going into the trades, more are still needed.
“This is an enormous issue all across the country. It is unfortunate so many people do not know the importance of these critically skilled workers that everyone depends on for life’s necessities,” Serbousek said. “Electricians are essential workers, but more importantly, highly trained electricians save more lives preventing electrocutions and fires than anyone realizes. They are also provided with a very good wage and benefit package because of their importance, and with no college debt.”
Other trades taught at MTI include trucking and several medical industry courses such as dental assistant, nursing assistant, medical coding and more. The Workforce Institute at Lincoln Land Community College also offers a variety of short-term training classes for high demand occupations, ranging from electrical, HVAC and welding to truck driver training, aviation maintenance and more.
When a student graduates from the nine-month course, Huff said MTI is vigilant about helping them find jobs in the field immediately.
“We know probably every business in town. When we first started this in 1995, we had five welding students. We’ve since graduated 35,000 students,” Huff said. “Once you get that skill, you’ve got it the rest of your life. You can take it anywhere in the world.”
This article appears in February SBJ 2026.