The collision repair industry could soon be facing a deep workforce shortage. While experts expect the industry to grow in the short and long term, shop owners have expressed concerns about a need for more skilled labor, particularly with more vehicles deploying tech-based features like advanced driver-assisted systems (ADAS) and battery-electric vehicles (BEVs).
Recent studies by CCC Intelligent Solutions said the shortages are hitting collision shop’s bottom lines. The study found a 4.9% year-over-year wage increase, partially due to a shorter availability of workers. Individual shops are already spotting the education gaps between younger technicians and the current strains in the repair industry.
“This is going to be a real struggle for the industry, to keep and get people that are willing to learn new technology,” John Ling, the owner of NEK Collision Repair in Lyndonville, VT, told Autobody News. “It’s always been a hands-on work industry, and now it’s going to be a technical industry.”
However, Scholarship America believes it has a solution.
The Minnesota-based organization, which started in 1958, has awarded more than $5 billion of scholarships to more than 3.1 million students across the U.S. since its inception. Scholarship America works with member companies, offering students from diverse backgrounds financial rewards to limit the high costs of higher education. The organization has worked with manufacturers like Mercedes-Benz and…
