ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY, Md. — On a Tuesday evening, young adults are busy - firing up blow torches and soldering pipes, preparing for a job in plumbing. "It's a good trade to have because you get into everything else," said Luke Hawley, a plumbing apprentice. Hawley's dad owns a plumbing company. He's seen firsthand the financial security the trade can provide. "I saw it during high school and I feel like I can go through that just like he did and maybe make a good living by doing it," Hawley said. For Geanbosco Nshimiyimana, who migrated to the U.S. from Rwanda, it's a chance to do similar work that he did before as a welder. "I will continue doing the same thing cause the most [important] thing is to help society, to do hands-on [work], and solve problems with people," Nshimiyimana said. Both of these men are entering the field at a time when it's experiencing a worker shortage. Nearly 50,000 plumbing jobs go unfilled each year, according to a study by John Dunham and Associates sponsored by LIXIL, a plumbing manufacturing company. The study also says if just 16,000 people were to join the field, it could cut plumbing costs across the U.S. by more than a billion dollars. Thomas Bunker teaches at Anne Arundel Community College's trade school. He's also an Anne Arundel County plumbing inspector. "I just don't think the quality in a lot of plumbing is what it used to be," Bunker said. Bunker says schools like this create well-rounded plumbers who know the ins and outs of the business. "Because I get to see it almost daily that it's harder and harder and it's costing consumers more and more money to get a quality plumber out there to do work," said Bunker. According to Indeed, plumbers in Maryland make $32 an hour. With a license as a master plumber, someone can get as high as $55 an hour. It also comes with purpose, knowing you did a job well done. So people, like Tom, are keeping up the fight to train the next wave of plumbers and pipe fitters needed to handle the workload.
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