Even the most technologically advanced company in the world could not do without having to call a plumber in the event of a breakdown. But while artificial intelligence flourishes at unprecedented speed, some traditional professions are withering away. This was detected by Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia, who for months has continually hinted in his public statements about the need for more carpenters, electricians and plumbers to build the factories and data centers that the chip company’s multibillion-dollar investment plans promise. “The skilled craftsman segment will boom,” he predicts. But for now, lack reigns. Reports like that of Labor market trends in Spainprepared by the Public Employment Service, designate these professions as one of the main sources of vacant positions. Hugo Wu, 19, studies an intermediate diploma in electrical and automatic installation technician at the public institute La Poveda in Arganda del Rey (Madrid) and does not know who Huang is. Nvidia doesn’t even look very familiar to you. But he shows absolute confidence when he talks about his future: “I know I will have a lot of work. »
Wu admits with some coyness that following the secondary and secondary education route was not for him and he ruled out going to university. He emphasizes that he prefers to do “manual things, which are more useful” and believes that post-compulsory education “is very theoretical, it is of no use for work”. This is why he decided to train as an electrician. This option route for vocational training (VT) is being followed by more and more people in Spain. In the 2024/2025 academic year, 1,188,901 students opted for an intermediate or higher degree, 32.6% more than five years ago, while 704,256 decided to study at high school, according to data from the Ministry of Education, Vocational Training and Sports.
One of the teachers at La Poveda is César Condé (55 years old), who emphasizes that technical professions have a present and a future. He assures that “it’s a rare day” when they don’t receive “one, two or three calls” from companies asking whether there are students available to work in all the professional training specialties they teach; and in addition to the degree Wu is studying, he is also focusing on plumbing. He says the pool of jobs they have “is empty” because either students who have completed their studies are already working, or they are still in training and cannot yet enter the job market.
Wu, following his professor’s advice, prefers to continue his education and obtain an advanced degree in industrial automation and robotics because he believes it will provide him with a better professional future. Condé, who has been teaching for 34 years, believes that following professional training is still frowned upon by society, even if it is now “seen with different eyes”. In the specific case of electricians, he acknowledges with some regret that the “stigma according to which an electrician devotes himself to installing four light bulbs” continues to exist. In reality, he adds, there are many other opportunities such as “industrial automation, renewable energies, home automation installations or telecommunications”.
Keys under construction
The need for these professionals covers many areas, some as sensitive as housing construction, given the crisis of access to housing that almost all advanced economies are experiencing. According to data from Report on the construction sector, According to a report published last May by the Construction Labor Foundation, the number of vacant jobs in this sector has almost doubled, with growth of 89.6%. Concretely, the professions most in demand are those of electricians who install buildings and homes, as indicated in the catalog of professions difficult to cover for the third quarter of 2025, prepared by the State Public Employment Service.
The growing demand for technical professionals in construction is also confirmed by Elena Gallego, professor at Complutense University specializing in labor economics, who considers it “urgent”. He agrees with Nvidia’s top executive that these jobs “are protected at the moment” because they are jobs that “are not easily replaceable.” The president of the National Construction Employers’ Confederation, Pedro Fernández, who also highlights the deficit of electricians, plumbers and masons, says that at least 700,000 new workers will be needed just to achieve the objectives of the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan in terms of housing.
This lack of professionals means that the employment outlook in this sector is very positive, according to Fernández. He predicts that by 2030 the sector could provide more than 160,000 jobs and defends this idea. “Whoever enters the building stays there. » Gallego counters that it is necessary to improve the quality of work. He maintains that companies dedicated to construction “must improve the conditions they offer to their employees”. An opinion shared by Daniel Barragán, general secretary of Habitat of CC OO, who calls for “the strengthening of safety conditions not only for electricians and plumbers, but for all construction workers”.
Employers and CC OO agree that worker training needs to be improved. Fernández specifically calls for “recovering the figure of the apprentice between 16 and 18 years old”, so that “students can carry out internships with professionals and make professional training more agile in order to promote “the almost instantaneous incorporation of students into the most urgent and priority jobs”. and social improvements” in these positions.
Ignoring the ups and downs of the job market at the moment, Wu says he didn’t choose to train as an electrician because of the good job prospects, but simply liked it. But since he started his studies, he realized that there were companies that wanted to hire him. This is why he defends his decision and advises it to all those who are hesitating between following vocational training or studying at high school: “The best is vocational training, it’s much more satisfying,” he says.
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