94% of Plumbers Are Satisfied With Their Job. Why Don't Kids Hear That?

Plumbing careers: Troy Benavidez of LIXIL says 94% of plumbers are satisfied with their job, and asks why schools keep steering kids away from it. Troy was just back from WorldSkills Shanghai, where LIXIL sponsored the plumbing and heating competition and American plumber Charlie Goede won an award of excellence. He compares how other countries connect industry and vocational education with how the U.S. does it, where companies like his still knock on trade school doors to get into the classroom. Troy Benavidez works at LIXIL, the global building and plumbing company behind American Standard, GROHE and DXV. LIXIL runs TradeUp, an American Standard program that visits schools around the country to train students on new plumbing products and technology. You'll hear what Troy saw at the WorldSkills Conference with 89 countries, why he thinks the U.S. draws too hard a line between college and the trades, and why kids who get excited at a summer camp lose it when they go back to a school system that doesn't include the trades. He and Andrew talk about what happens after a new hire shows up on day one, why apprentice pay is hard to live on at 26 or 27, the LIXIL study behind the 94% figure, private equity buying plumbing and HVAC companies, and whether six-week data center training programs will pull workers out of the trades. IN THIS EPISODE (00:00) – WorldSkills Shanghai: Charlie Goede's award of excellence, what the competitors went through, and what the U.S. can learn from other countries. (08:44) – Industry and the classroom: Germany's carmakers built into vocational education, and why U.S. industry training is still an add-on. (11:50) – After middle school: Tools & Tiaras, Evin Jarrett's middle school program, and why kids lose interest when the summer ends. (19:38) – LIXIL and TradeUp: American Standard, GROHE and DXV, and how TradeUp brings new products and technology into trade schools. (24:02) – Day one: What companies that keep their people do differently, and why investing in training keeps the job interesting. (28:44) – Getting through an apprenticeship: Apprentice pay, supporting a family at 26 or 27, and career changers in their 30s, 40s and 50s. (31:12) – 94% job satisfaction: The LIXIL study comparing what consumers think of plumbing with what plumbers say, and the path to owning a business. (37:46) – Data centers: Six weeks of training versus years of apprenticeship, and what happens when the build-out ends. (42:18) – The one change: Stop making young people choose between college and the trades, and help teachers and parents see the options. KEY TAKEAWAYS 1. Plumbers like their work. Troy says a LIXIL study found 94% of plumbers are totally satisfied with their job, while consumers still picture someone carrying around a plunger. 2. Industry is still knocking on the door. Troy says U.S. trade schools treat industry training as an add-on, and some high schools won't let trainers wear an American Standard or LIXIL shirt. 3. The first four years are the hard part. Troy says apprentice pay is a hard salary to live on for a 26- or 27-year-old supporting a family, and that employers and government could help close that gap. 4. Six weeks isn't a career. Troy says a six-week data center training program "isn't gonna be recognized outside of that," and hopes those workers come back to more traditional training. ABOUT THE GUEST Troy Benavidez is with LIXIL, the company behind American Standard. He was in Shanghai for WorldSkills 2026, where LIXIL sponsored the plumbing and heating competition, and he works with TradeUp, American Standard's program for plumbing students and instructors. KEYWORDS plumbing careers, plumber job satisfaction, how to become a plumber, plumbing apprenticeship, skilled trades careers, WorldSkills, W

94% of Plumbers Are Satisfied With Their Job. Why Don't Kids Hear That? | Troy Benavidez