My thoughts on this are pretty much inline with everyone else that has posted previously. The younger generation has the attitude that they are entitled to everything. They do not want to work hard, but they want to be paid better than managment! I also find that most of the younger " entitled " generation do have an interest in this industry, however most high schools have eliminated or downgraded auto, woodworking, metal, and drafting classes. They have not been exposed to this type of work like we were when we went thru school. Oh ya and to answer the question - average age we see is approximatly 45-55

seems like 45 is the avg I've seen

I remember hearing about 10 years ago that the biggest challenge to our industry was aging technicians and not being able to recruit younger talent. I believe good forklift truck technicians are the most knowledgeable when compared to auto, construction equipment and airplane techs.
I interviewed an RV tech this week. He makes $15 per hour and gets billed out at $115 per hour. The shop is going flat rate because they think they aren't getting a good enough return in the service department. If he makes the flat rate he will be paid $17.50.

"OK, I'm here, I punched the time clock, now pay me"

oh but to be more to the point of this topic...

the average age of a service tech in my area seems to run between the ages of 35 to 55. (those that have dedicated themselves to the job that is) :o)

All this stuff you guys have been saying................is the truth!

My observation is close to what swoop223 says but I would like to add young persons today seem to have the attitude of being owed something just for taking the job. They want top pay starting out, not working up to it, expect way too much for too little. In today's society, where so much is given away, they do not want to work for things as readily as those of us who are older. There are a few but very few willing to put in the time and effort to become top notch. They have the me first attitude and as Swoop said, do not put the customer first, which most of us know is what drives this business.

over the years i've seen quite a few guys and even a couple of women come into the service end of this business.
Most of them do not stay very long because they just dont seem to grasp and hold on to the concept of this business. It almost seems as if they see the potential for the pay they can get but after they get into it something happens and they seem to give up and either just leave and go on to other jobs that pay more or get fired for not performing up to standards that the management sets.
One thing that i personally noticed is they did not seem to have the customers interests put in the forefront of their activities, they appeared to be more concerned with how much money they could make instead of putting the customers interests first. (Just an observation)

Young people these days are caught up in the 'money' wanting to make it all up front, get the 'big money' without working for it it seems. Once they find out they actually have to put forth an effort or get thier hands dirty they run away.
Over the years i can count just a small handful of individuals that have stuck it out and done very well , hung in there and are now the top tech's in the field in this area.
This is a tough business and i can say that if your heart and mind are not into it you will not survive.

I agree. The lack of capable, interested individuals in line to do what we do is pretty thin. And in the end, pay scale AND labor rates will have to go up. Question is- would a much higher pay scale start attracting capable candidates. Cause this trade takes skills that not everyone can master. AND, quite often, it's dirty hard work!

I've noticed here in the UK that younger people just don't want to learn to be a forklift tech.

Same story with HGV tech's to.

There are more HGV job's out there then trained people to fill them & forklift job's are going the same way, give it a few more years & it will be name your price if your a forklift or HGV tech.

I've worked with 3 forklift apprentices over they years, only 1 managed to complete the course & go on to stay in the industry.