Why America has so few carpenters
I left a job as a carpenter and joiner in 2008 when work dried up. My father stayed at it. I had done some study with the open university and used that to get into office work in Finance.<p>I miss using tools, but I don&#x27;t miss the way you had to rush to make money. I always did a good job, but it was constant pressure.<p>The article mentions that the longer time on the job reduces what can be paid vs a plumber.  This is true,  but also true is being able to supply materials. I would rarely supply construction timber,  because either the main contractor or even the client could buy it themselves for the same price.  Whereas a plumber would always supply a boiler,  a tank, a bathroom...all with tasty discounts that were not available to the public.<p>The other big change I saw was the nailgun and chopsaw revolution. All of a sudden some ex-labourer was touting a nailgun and was now a carpenter. Nobody seemed to care that they didn&#x27;t know what they were doing. We started to find we would be called in to do the roof and then some clown who was &#x27;cheaper&#x27; was called in to do the rest.<p>My apprenticship was 3 years with day release to technical college.  That day was a complete joke, the college was disorganised, and underfunded.<p>I have constant pain in my hands, back and knees for my 10 years. Everywhere I go I see bad carpentry, and nobody cares but me.<p>AMA<p>Edit: I&#x27;m in the UK