Fixed Ops Journal - May 2016 - (Page 12)

FIXED OPS JOURNAL Nelly Colon, a 24-year-old Nissan certified master technician, typifies today's techs, mixing wrenches and computer diagnostics in a day's work. PHOTO JOE REPOLE FIGHTING FICTION ■ Grandpa's 'grease monkey' label hampers tech recruitment rtruett@crain.com R ight now on Monster.com, the giant national career website, dozens of new-vehicle dealers are embroiled in a bidding war of sorts for certified automotive repair technicians. Some stores are offering starting salaries as high as $100,000 per year and $3,000 signing bonuses. The job requirements have morphed along with advancing technology in today's new vehicles. Required skills now include strong math ability, solid writing and communications skills, logical thinking and diagnostic talent. But the image of the "grease monkey" stubbornly persists in some quarters - most notably among the parents of high school students contemplating careers fixing vehi- PAGE 12 MAY 2016 " "That's a challenge we're constantly working to overcome by educating parents and counselors about the high-tech nature of today's service techs." " RICHARD TRUETT CARLOS DELLAMADDALENA Universal Technical Institute cles. One reason that image persists is that some of the lowest rungs on the technician's career ladder involve dirty jobs at close to minimum wage. It's common for students without factory training or certifications to get their hands dirty changing oil, replacing tires and doing other entry-level jobs while they take classes, either at vocational schools or from vehicle manufacturers. 'Grow your own' "The only real way to get techs anymore is hiring younger folks to a quick lube-type position and giving them hands-on experience and then manufacturer training and maybe even getting them to go to vocational school to take some basic courses," says Doug McLeish, service manager at Nash Chevrolet in Lawrenceville, Ga. "You grow your own, so to speak." Mike Bammer, an instructor at the Lapeer County Education and Technology Center in Attica, Mich., says, "One of my things is trySEE GREASE, PAGE 14 http://www.Monster.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Fixed Ops Journal - May 2016

Fixed Ops Journal - May 2016
Contents
Editor’s Letter
Service Counter
Legal Lane
Profit Builder
‘Grease monkey’?
Hail
Photo story
Richard Truett
High light
Service satisfaction
Certification
Tsunami
Recalls
90-second oil change
Financing fixes
Supreme Court
Tech trends
Top 50
5 Minutes With
Shop Talk
Fixed in Time

Fixed Ops Journal - May 2016