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As layoffs sweep many sectors, one skilled trade is facing the opposite problem: not enough workers. Otis CEO Judy Marks says the elevator industry is short of trained technicians, a gap that affects building safety, repair timelines and a rare pathway to high-paying, long-term work.
Marks, who leads Otis—a company with about 72,000 employees—says roughly 45,000 of them are field mechanics and that demand for those roles is outpacing hiring. Since Otis separated from its parent in April 2020, the number of its field technicians has risen by roughly 12.5%, underlining steady expansion even as other parts of the labor market contract.
Beyond installing elevators and escalators, these technicians handle ongoing maintenance and emergency repairs. In some regions, notably Japan, a combination of population decline and a surge in renovation and construction work has made it harder to find available skilled workers.
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Why automation is not the immediate answer
Unlike many blue-collar roles threatened by automation, elevator service is tightly regulated and requires hands-on expertise. Marks describes the work as a practiced craft—years of training and physical labor that regulators and building owners still prefer to entrust to humans rather than machines.
That regulatory framework, combined with the complexity of fieldwork, helps explain why employers continue to invest in training rather than replacing roles with robotics anytime soon.
A career that endures
Many mechanics stay in the trade for decades. Otis reports a balanced age distribution: the company has about as many technicians with under five years on the job as it does workers with 30-plus years of experience. Marks says that intergenerational continuity—where family members follow one another into the trade—is common.
In the United States, most Otis mechanics work within a multi-employer union structure. Entry typically begins at 18 through a formal apprenticeship: new hires work on crews during the day and attend trade school at night. After a four-year training period and a licensing exam, apprentices can reach journeyman status.
- Career entry: Apprenticeships from age 18, four-year programs plus exam to become journeyman.
- Workforce size: About 45,000 mechanics at Otis out of a ~72,000-strong company.
- Projected growth: The Bureau of Labor Statistics expects a roughly 5% increase in elevator and escalator installers and repairers from 2024 to 2034—above the all-occupation average.
- Top earnings: Median and top-end wages place the trade among the highest-paid construction occupations.
Pay, benefits and recruiting tools
Recent labor statistics show elevator and escalator technicians command strong compensation: an average annual wage reported in May 2025 placed the occupation at the top of the construction-and-extraction category, with mean pay around $109,820 and top earners near $158,890. Those figures are well above both the construction category average and the nationwide mean salary.
At Otis, mechanics may also access additional benefits—Marks has said the company will support employees who want to pursue college tuition, a recruiting tool that helps broaden the pool of candidates considering the trade.
What this means for workers and property managers
For job seekers, elevator mechanics present a compelling option: short entry pathways through apprenticeships, strong wages, and career longevity. For building owners and managers, the shortage could translate into longer wait times for service and higher labor costs as companies compete for qualified technicians.
Policymakers and labor organizers may view the gap as an opportunity to expand apprenticeship slots and vocational outreach, especially in communities where construction and refurbishment are growing. LinkedIn data has already pointed to construction as an increasingly important sector for new college graduates, reinforcing the case for investment in trade training.
As the economy reshuffles across industries, elevator service stands out: regulated, hands-on and resilient to near-term automation—qualities that are shaping labor demand and opening a high-paying path for new entrants into the skilled trades.
