A growing number of young adults are choosing tools over titles—and the skilled trades over the traditional office. According to a new report from Resume Builder, 42% of Generation Z adults are currently working in or pursuing a blue-collar or skilled trade job. Surprisingly, many of them hold college degrees.
Among Gen Z workers with degrees, 37% have shifted toward the trades, citing reasons such as better long-term job prospects, low alignment between their degree and actual job opportunities, and concerns about artificial intelligence replacing white-collar roles. Simply put, many young professionals are realizing that a hands-on career in the trades offers more stability, security, and satisfaction than the desk jobs they were initially steered toward.
From constructiondive.com:
Gen Z workers with degrees noted several reasons they chose blue-collar work over a career aligned with their degree, including better long-term prospects (30%), an inability to find a job in their field (19%), not earning enough with their degree (16%) and their degree not leading to the career they expected (16%).
In addition, Gen Z workers said they want more flexibility or independence, believe trade careers are in high demand and believe blue-collar jobs are less likely to be replaced by artificial intelligence.
Among Gen Z workers without degrees, blue-collar work appears to offer a path to financial independence without student loans, the report found. They pointed to motivations such as earning income sooner (60%), avoiding student loan debt (40%), gaining better long-term security (36%), earning more without a degree (31%) and believing these jobs are less likely to be replaced by AI (28%).