Top 10 Trade Careers You Can Train for with WRT Funding in Washington (2026)

Table of Contents

• Why Worker Retraining Is a One-Shot Opportunity
• CDL Truck Driver
• HVAC Technician
• Electrician Pre-Apprenticeship
• Welder
• Plumber Pre-Apprenticeship
• Diesel Mechanic
• Machinist
• Construction Management
• Automotive Technician
• Industrial Maintenance Technician
• Packing Your Next Career with Worker Retraining
• Frequently Asked Questions

CDL Truck Driver

When you picture a CDL, it’s not a classroom you see first, it’s the road: dark stretch of I-90, wipers going, you in the cab getting the load where it needs to be. That’s what Class A truck driving really buys you with that spot in your “backpack” - long stretches of focused, mostly solo work, moving freight between ports, warehouses, and stores so the rest of Washington keeps humming.

What the Work Looks Like Day to Day

As a Class A CDL driver, your day usually starts with a pre-trip inspection, checking brakes, lights, tires, and your load. From there you’re backing into tight docks, navigating city streets or mountain passes, securing cargo, and logging your hours electronically. Some drivers haul containers out of Seattle and Tacoma ports, others run groceries into central Washington, and some stick close to home doing local deliveries. It’s hands-on, detail-oriented work that mixes physical tasks like climbing in and out of the cab with long stretches behind the wheel and steady contact with dispatch, warehouse staff, and customers.

Pay, Demand, and Job Types in Washington

In Washington, Class A drivers are solidly in “pay the bills” territory from the start. Average pay runs about $1,836 per week, with most new grads landing around $48,000-$58,000 per year and experienced or specialized drivers (tanker, hazmat, heavy haul) reaching roughly $75,000-$95,000+, based on statewide analyses and sources like Indeed’s Washington truck driver pay data and CDL-focused sites. Washington tends to sit above national averages because of port traffic, agriculture, and cross-state freight. A quick look at “will train” postings shows dozens of Washington employers hiring on repeat, often with sign-on bonuses or tuition reimbursement, which lines up with the broader driver shortage most carriers talk about.

Training Path with Worker Retraining

To earn a Class A CDL in Washington, the Department of Licensing requires at least 160 hours of Entry-Level Driver Training, typically including around 40 hours of classroom/theory, range work (backing, coupling, maneuvers), and at least 18 hours of supervised street driving. The specifics are laid out on the state’s CDL training requirements page from the Department of Licensing. Many community and technical colleges - like Clover Park Technical College, Renton Technical College, and Walla Walla Community College - run Class A programs that last about 4-10 weeks full-time. With Worker Retraining, a common path is using WRT to pay tuition, books, and some fees for an 8-week CDL program at a college, then moving directly into a regional or local role in the $50K+ range. Workforce advisors at the college help you map out the plan so that WRT covers this one clear program rather than a mix of unrelated classes.

Lifestyle, Physical Demands, and Fit

On the lifestyle side, CDL work is one of the “heaviest” items you can pack in your backpack - not because of the training length, but because of the schedule. You’re looking at long, irregular hours, early mornings or overnights, and, for long-haul roles, days or weeks away from home. Physically, you’ll do a lot of sitting, plus some 50+ pound lifting, climbing into the cab and trailer, chaining tires in winter, and handling freight. If you have significant back, shoulder, or sleep issues, or if you’re the primary caregiver who needs to be home nightly, you’d likely aim for regional or local routes and be honest with yourself and your advisor about those limits. The upside is that CDL training is relatively short, demand is high, and income ramps up quickly - so if your backpack can carry the lifestyle, trucking can be one of the fastest ways to turn Worker Retraining into steady, family-supporting pay.

HVAC Technician

Where trucking is about long highways, HVAC is about the inside of buildings you barely notice until something goes wrong. In this trade, your “backpack space” buys you the skills to keep Washington’s homes, hospitals, schools, and even data centers at the right temperature and breathing clean air - work that shows up every time there’s a heat wave, a cold snap, or wildfire smoke in the air.

What the Work Involves

As an HVAC technician, your days are a mix of crawling through attics, checking rooftop units, and talking with customers who are either freezing or roasting. You’re installing and servicing furnaces, heat pumps, and AC systems; troubleshooting electrical components and thermostats; checking refrigerant lines; and making sure everything meets local codes. You might be in a single-family home one hour and a big commercial plant room the next, which keeps the work varied but also means you’re often on the move, tools and gauges in hand.

Pay & Job Demand in Washington

HVAC sits in a sweet spot where the training is manageable and the pay can grow. Across Washington, techs average about $66,577 per year (roughly $32/hour), with top earners - especially licensed journeyman techs around Tacoma and Seattle - reaching about $113,000 annually, based on statewide summaries like the HVAC career data on Research.com’s HVAC salary and career guide. National projections show HVAC adding roughly 50,000 new jobs by 2026, and Washington’s hotter summers, wildfire smoke, and push for energy-efficient retrofits are all keeping demand strong for people who can install, maintain, and upgrade systems.

Training Path with Worker Retraining

Most people use Worker Retraining for the classroom side of HVAC and then stack on-the-job experience. Community and technical colleges like Bates Technical College, Clark College, and Perry Technical Institute run HVAC/R programs that range from 6 to 24 months for certificates or associate degrees. A realistic route looks like this: you meet with a Worker Retraining advisor, use WRT to cover tuition, books, and some fees for a 9-18 month HVAC certificate, then start as an entry-level installer or service tech while you work toward full journey-level status. Colleges such as Clark outline how their Worker Retraining program supports HVAC and other workforce programs, and local advisors help you make sure you’re choosing one coherent program that fits within your funding window.

Physical & Lifestyle Fit

This trade is very much “on your feet” work. You’ll be lifting 40-75 pounds, climbing ladders, squirming into crawlspaces, and working on rooftops in the heat and cold. Most jobs are daytime with some on-call rotations, which can be easier on family life than long-haul driving but still means early mornings and occasional emergency calls when a system fails. If your backpack includes a decent level of physical ability, comfort with heights and tight spaces, and an interest in how electrical, mechanical, and airflow systems all connect, HVAC can be a strong use of your Worker Retraining shot - especially knowing that, over time, it can realistically grow into a six-figure trade without a four-year degree.

Electrician Pre-Apprenticeship

If the idea of flipping a light switch someday and knowing you wired that circuit appeals to you, electrician pre-apprenticeship is one of the most powerful things you can pack in your backpack. Day to day, electricians install and maintain the wiring, panels, and systems that keep homes, high-rises, hospitals, and factories running. Early on, you’re pulling wire, mounting boxes, bending conduit, and learning to read blueprints and the National Electrical Code, all under the eye of a licensed journeyman who checks your work twice.

Why Pre-Apprenticeship Matters in Washington

Washington now uses an apprenticeship-only model for 01 (general) electrical certification. Since 2023, you can’t just go to school, graduate, and sit for a journeyman exam; you have to complete a state-approved apprenticeship of about 8,000 hours over 4-5 years, plus related classroom instruction. Short pre-apprenticeship programs at community colleges have become the on-ramp for adults changing careers: usually 1-2 quarters full time, covering basic electrical theory, safety, tool use, and hands-on lab work that help you stand out in competitive apprenticeship interviews. Colleges like North Seattle College, Renton Technical College, and South Seattle College all run versions of these programs, which align with guidance from Washington L&I’s electrical apprenticeship requirements.

Pay and Long-Term Outlook

The reason this path is worth that long commitment is the earnings and stability on the other side. In Washington, entry-level electrical trainees often start around $55,000-$65,000 per year, while fully licensed 01 journeyman electricians commonly earn $80,000+, especially in union, industrial, or large commercial roles. Nationally, electrician jobs are projected to grow around 10% over the decade, faster than average, and Washington’s mix of population growth, construction, and clean-energy projects (solar, EV infrastructure, data centers) keeps demand high for people who can safely work with power.

How Worker Retraining - and Alternatives - Fit

Worker Retraining is usually used to pay for that first, focused step: your pre-apprenticeship. Workforce education staff at colleges like North Seattle or Renton Technical help you use WRT to cover tuition, books, and some fees for a single, coherent program rather than scattered classes. Once you’ve completed pre-apprenticeship, you apply to registered apprenticeships (union or non-union) where you earn while you learn. If you start down this road and realize that the physical side or multi-year timeline is too heavy for your backpack, you still have options: Nucamp, for example, is an approved Washington Worker Retraining provider that can cover up to 80% of tuition for eligible students in online bootcamps like Web Development, Back End with SQL and Python, or Cybersecurity. In those programs, students typically pay $100 per month for 5 months out-of-pocket, with the rest covered by Worker Retraining, but you’ll want to confirm details and your eligibility with a local college or WorkSource advisor before you switch lanes.

Is This a Fit for Your Backpack?

Electrician work is not light: you’re lifting materials, working on ladders and lifts, spending time in unfinished buildings in all weather, and starting many days before most people’s alarms. Safety rules are strict for a reason. The upside is that once you’ve carried this path through a pre-apprenticeship and full apprenticeship, you’re holding a license that travels well, tends to stay in demand even in slower economies, and can support a family. If your handwritten checklist includes long-term stability, strong earnings, and you don’t mind combining math, code books, and physical work, using your one solid shot of Worker Retraining on an electrician pre-apprenticeship can be a smart, if weighty, choice for your backpack.

Welder

Welding is one of those trades you can almost smell and hear before you ever step into a shop - bright arc, the crackle of a bead, steel cooling on a rack. If you’re the kind of person who likes seeing exactly what you built at the end of the day, this is a path where your training turns into something you can literally put your hands on.

What the Work Involves

As a welder, you’re using heat to join metal for everything from shipyards and rail cars to construction beams and custom fabrication. On a given shift you might read blueprints and welding symbols, cut and fit components, then run different processes - MIG, TIG, stick, or flux-core - depending on the job. In Washington, welding ties directly into aerospace, marine work, construction, and manufacturing, so you could be in a quiet fabrication shop one month and on a noisy jobsite the next.

Pay & Job Demand in Washington

For this trade, the numbers are solid. In 2026, welders in Washington earn about $70,179 per year, or roughly $33.74 an hour, according to welding trade school rankings that compile state wage data. Highly skilled TIG welders, pipe welders, or people working on complex structural projects can push above that with experience, certifications, and overtime. Demand through 2025-2026 is described as “rapid growth” in many construction and manufacturing sectors, a trend echoed in national trade analyses like the high-demand careers overview from North American Trade Schools’ look at fast-growing skilled trades, which highlights welding as one of the core crafts employers struggle to fill.

Training Path with Worker Retraining

Welding is one of the quicker trades to learn well enough to get hired, which makes it a good match for limited Worker Retraining funds. Many Washington colleges offer WRT-eligible welding programs, including Everett Community College, Olympic College, and Bellingham Technical College. At Olympic, for example, welding appears among the programs supported by their workforce and Worker Retraining office, which explains how students can use WRT to cover tuition, books, and some fees for short certificates listed on the Olympic College Worker Retraining page. A realistic sequence looks like this: use WRT to complete a 2-3 quarter welding certificate, start in an entry-level shop or field role in roughly the $40,000-$55,000 range, then stack additional certs (like pipe or advanced TIG) as you gain experience to move toward that $70K+ mark.

Physical & Lifestyle Fit

This is very physical, environment-heavy work. Expect long stretches standing, holding awkward positions, and lifting heavy materials; you’re working around heat, sparks, and noise in full PPE - helmet, leathers, gloves, boots. Some jobs are indoors in fabrication shops, others are outdoors on bridges, ships, or industrial sites in whatever weather Western or Eastern Washington is serving that day. If you really need clean, climate-controlled conditions, welding may feel like a lot to carry. But if you’re okay getting dirty, enjoy working with your hands, and want a trade where a 3-12 month WRT-funded program can turn into visible, in-demand work relatively quickly, welding can be a very practical thing to commit your “one big” training shot to.

Plumber Pre-Apprenticeship

Plumbing is one of those trades you only think about when something is wrong: no hot water, a leaking ceiling, a toilet that refuses to behave. For plumbers, that’s the whole job - showing up when water and waste aren’t going where they should, and making things right again. If you can handle a little mess in exchange for stability and strong wages, a plumbing pre-apprenticeship is a powerful way to get your foot in the door.

What Entry-Level Plumbing Work Involves

In a pre-apprentice or first-year role, you’re the extra set of hands that makes the job possible. You’ll haul pipe, hand tools to journey-level plumbers, and help install and repair water lines, drains, fixtures, and appliances. You’ll learn to read basic plumbing plans, follow local code, solder and glue pipe, and pressure-test systems to make sure they’re safe. Work might be in new construction, remodeling, or service calls - one day you’re roughing in a bathroom in a new house, the next you’re in a hospital mechanical room or trying to find a leak in a restaurant kitchen with the lunch rush looming.

Pay and Demand in Washington

The money is a big reason people put up with the wet and the weird. Washington journey-level plumbers frequently average around $63.47 per hour, which works out to well over $120,000 per year for full-time work, and entry-level workers coming out of pre-apprenticeship or starting formal apprenticeships often land around $70,000 annually when you factor in overtime, according to wage data summarized in a detailed Washington plumbing license guide from ServiceTitan. Demand stays high because water and waste systems can’t be postponed - new housing, commercial builds, and infrastructure projects all need plumbing, and repairs don’t stop just because the economy cools off.

How Worker Retraining Fits into the Picture

Worker Retraining funds are usually aimed at that initial classroom step: the pre-apprenticeship. Programs at places like Renton Technical College, Green River College, and the Construction Industry Training Council (CITC) are typically about 10-15 weeks full time and focus on safety, basic plumbing skills, tools, and job readiness. Through Washington’s Worker Retraining program - including specific grants for private career schools - some students can use WRT to cover tuition, books, and some fees for pre-apprenticeship at community colleges and, in some cases, organizations like CITC, with confirmation from a Worker Retraining or WorkSource advisor. After that, you apply to registered plumbing apprenticeships (union or non-union), where you earn a wage while you log the roughly 8,000 hours of on-the-job training and related classroom instruction needed for journey status.

Physical Demands and Lifestyle Fit

Plumbing is very physical and often not glamorous. You’re kneeling, crouching, and crawling in tight crawlspaces and basements; lifting pipe and fixtures; working in trenches and sometimes in bad weather; and dealing with dirty water or sewage when things go really wrong. Hours can be early, and if you move into service work, you’ll see emergency calls at night or on weekends - burst pipes don’t care about your calendar. The trade-off is that if your body can handle it and you’re okay with some mess and unpredictability, a relatively short WRT-funded pre-apprenticeship can be the first step toward one of the highest-paying, most resilient trade careers in the state.

Diesel Mechanic

The diesel shop is a different kind of soundtrack than a classroom: impact wrenches, engine brakes being tested, a bus rumbling as it comes off the lift. If driving trucks felt like too much time on the highway for your backpack, becoming a diesel mechanic is what it looks like when you stay in the bay and keep those trucks, buses, and heavy machines moving instead.

What the Work Looks Like Day to Day

As a diesel mechanic or bus and truck technician, you’re diagnosing and repairing engines, transmissions, and braking systems on vehicles that earn money every minute they’re running. One day you might be tracking down an electrical fault on a transit bus; the next you’re doing preventive maintenance on a fleet of semi-trucks or working on heavy equipment for construction, agriculture, or forestry. You’ll use hand tools, lifts, and computerized diagnostic systems, read service manuals, and log your work so the fleet knows exactly what’s been done. It’s hands-on, problem-solving work where the vehicles you fix are back on the road that same afternoon.

Pay & Job Demand in Washington

For diesel mechanics in Washington, the pay reflects how essential the work is. Bus and truck mechanics and diesel technicians here average around $82,014 per year, based on program outcome and wage data reported on Washington’s training catalog and by schools that track their graduates’ earnings. Employers from trucking companies to dealerships describe demand as “skyrocketing” heading into 2025-2026, with aging fleets, growth in freight and logistics, and a wave of retirements all making it harder to fill open roles. Resources that profile high-demand trades, like the diesel program overview at Lake Washington Institute of Technology’s Diesel and Heavy Equipment Technician program, highlight how consistently shops look for new techs who can handle both mechanical and electronic systems.

Training Path with Worker Retraining

Most diesel programs are longer than a CDL course but shorter than a four-year degree, which lines up well with Worker Retraining. Common options include 10-12 month certificates, sometimes with a built-in paid internship, and 2-year associate degrees that dive deeper into advanced diagnostics and systems. Colleges like Lake Washington Institute of Technology, Clover Park Technical College, and Centralia College offer diesel and heavy equipment programs that appear on Washington’s Career Bridge site, where the diesel technician program listing shows both training length and typical wages for completers. With WRT, a realistic path is using funding to cover tuition, books, and some fees for a 10-12 month certificate, completing an internship with a dealership or fleet shop, and then stepping into a full-time role with room to grow.

Physical & Lifestyle Fit

Compared with driving, diesel work keeps you closer to home but still asks a lot of your body. You’ll be lifting heavy components, working under and around large vehicles, and spending most of the day on your feet in a noisy, sometimes dirty shop environment. The upside for many people’s backpacks is the schedule: diesel techs are usually on regular day shifts, with some evening or weekend work, but you’re almost always sleeping in your own bed instead of a sleeper cab. If you like the idea of understanding how machines work more than piloting them down the highway, and your energy is better spent turning wrenches than staring at a windshield for hours, using Worker Retraining on a diesel program can turn into a stable, in-demand career without leaving the state or your family behind for days at a time.

Machinist

Instead of sparks or engine noise, the machinist world is the steady hum of CNC mills and the smell of cutting fluid, a part taking shape a few thousandths of an inch at a time. If your backpack leans more toward precision and problem-solving than climbing ladders or working on rooftops, machining can be a way to stay hands-on without quite as much wear and tear as some other trades.

What Machinists Actually Do

As a machinist or CNC operator, you’re making the parts that other industries rely on: aerospace components, medical device pieces, custom tools, fixtures for food processing, and more. Day to day, that means setting up and running CNC mills and lathes, reading blueprints and machining drawings, dialing in or editing G-code, and checking your work with micrometers, calipers, and gauges to meet tight tolerances. In Washington, that often puts you in shops that supply Boeing and its vendors, transportation and marine manufacturers, or high-precision job shops serving multiple industries.

Pay, Demand, and Where the Work Is

Nationally, skilled machinists typically earn around $55,000-$75,000 per year, and Washington wages tend to run higher because of the aerospace and advanced manufacturing demand. With overtime and shift differentials in busy shops, experienced CNC operators and setup/programmers can move into the $80,000+ range. Demand is being fueled by infrastructure and defense spending, ongoing aircraft production and maintenance, and the spread of robotics and automated production lines. Resources like SkillUp Coalition’s overview of in-demand trade careers call out machining and CNC work as a core part of the modern manufacturing workforce, especially in states with strong aerospace sectors.

Training with Worker Retraining (and Lifestyle Fit)

Community and technical colleges like Shoreline Community College, Green River College, and Spokane Community College offer machining and CNC programs that line up well with Worker Retraining: short certificates of about 2-3 quarters for CNC operation and blueprint reading, and 2-year associate degrees that add more advanced machining, programming, and sometimes basic robotics. WRT is typically used to fund one clear path - often that first certificate or the core of an AAS - covering tuition, books, and some fees while you focus on building skills that local employers are actively hiring for.

On the lifestyle side, machining is a mix of physical and technical demands: you’re on your feet most of the day, moving materials and handling tools in a noisy shop with strict safety rules, but you’re usually indoors and not out in the weather. Many employers run multiple shifts (day, swing, graveyard), sometimes with shift differentials that boost pay, which can be a plus or minus depending on your family schedule. If your handwritten checklist includes steady, detail-oriented work, interest in how machines and code come together, and you’d rather stand by a CNC than on a roof in January, using Worker Retraining on a machining program can be a smart way to fill your backpack with skills that stay in demand across several of Washington’s biggest industries.

Construction Management

Construction management is what it looks like when you step off the ladder and start coordinating the whole site instead of just your piece of it. If swinging a hammer forever doesn’t fit in your backpack, but you like the rhythm of job sites and the idea of keeping a project on track, associate-level construction management can be a way to stay in the industry while shifting into more planning and oversight.

What the Work Actually Involves

With a two-year construction management background, you’re usually stepping into roles like assistant project manager, estimator, project engineer, or site coordinator. Your days are split between office and field: reading blueprints and specs, helping build schedules and budgets, tracking change orders, making sure subs know where to be and when, and walking job sites to check progress and safety. You’re not doing as much heavy installation yourself, but you’re close enough to the work to hear the saws, see problems early, and be the person everyone comes to when there’s a conflict or a question about the plan.

Pay, Demand, and Where You Fit In

Construction management sits in the higher-earning end of trade-adjacent careers. Across many markets, average salaries run from about $70,000 to $120,000+ per year, depending on role, experience, and project size, a range reflected in national trade-job data compiled by sites like Indeed’s roundup of the highest-paying trade jobs. In Washington’s growing metros and regional hubs, constant commercial and residential development keeps demand steady for people who can coordinate complex builds. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects roughly 5% job growth for construction managers over a decade, and Washington tends to track that, especially with infrastructure and housing projects in the pipeline.

*Actual pay varies by region, employer, union status, and experience.

Training Paths with Worker Retraining

Worker Retraining typically fits best around 2-year technical degrees and certificates, which is exactly where construction management sits at many community and technical colleges. Schools like Edmonds College, Cascadia College, and South Puget Sound Community College offer associate degrees or short certificates in construction management, project supervision, or related fields that show up on Washington’s training catalogs and Eligible Training Provider List. With WRT, you’d usually work with a workforce advisor to build one clear plan: complete an AAS in about 18-24 months, using Worker Retraining plus grants or federal aid to cover tuition, books, and some fees, while taking classes in scheduling, estimating, building codes, and project administration.

Lifestyle, Physical Demands, and Tech-Hybrid Options

This path is less about swinging tools all day and more about coordinating people and information, but it’s not a desk job in the pure sense. You’ll spend plenty of time on active job sites, climbing temporary stairs and ladders, wearing PPE, and dealing with noise, weather, and deadlines. Hours can run long around key milestones like concrete pours, inspections, or turnovers. If your backpack includes strong organizational and communication skills, and you like guiding the work more than doing every task yourself, construction management can turn a 2-year WRT-funded program into one of the higher-paying roles on this list. And if you realize along the way that you’re more drawn to the software side of projects - things like digital plans, scheduling tools, or data from job sites - you can pair your field experience with a tech program at a Worker Retraining-approved provider such as Nucamp, opening doors into construction tech, BIM support, or software roles that still keep you connected to the building world without quite as much mud on your boots.

Automotive Technician

The auto bay has its own kind of weather: the smell of oil and coolant, a scan tool beeping on a cart, rain streaking down cars waiting outside. If you like solving puzzles with your hands as much as your head, becoming an automotive technician is what it looks like to turn that environment into a paycheck, not just a repair bill.

What You Actually Do All Day

As an automotive technician, you’re the person a service writer turns to when a customer says, “It’s making this weird noise.” On the straightforward days, you’re doing oil changes, tire rotations, and brake jobs. On the more complex ones, you’re using scan tools and diagnostic software to chase down electrical gremlins, hybrid battery issues, or transmission problems. You’ll work on engines, steering and suspension, cooling systems, and electronics, documenting everything you do so the shop and the customer know exactly what was fixed.

Pay & Demand in Washington

In Washington, most working auto techs land in the middle of the trades pay spectrum: typically around $54,000-$68,000 per year, depending on experience, ASE certifications, and whether you’re at an independent shop or a busy dealership. National data show that technicians who add advanced diagnostics, hybrid/EV skills, or manufacturer-specific training tend to move beyond local medians over time. Articles that track high-demand trades, like the overview from Philadelphia Technician Training Institute’s look at high-demand skilled trades, consistently list automotive service technology among the roles employers struggle to keep fully staffed, especially as vehicles get more complex and many master techs retire.

Training with Worker Retraining

Worker Retraining pairs well with auto programs because most fall into that 6-24 month zone. Community and technical colleges like Walla Walla Community College, Skagit Valley College, and Lower Columbia College offer automotive technology certificates and associate degrees that appear on Washington’s training catalog and can often be funded through WRT. A common path looks like this: you meet with a workforce advisor, build a single, clear plan around an auto tech certificate or AAS, and use Worker Retraining to cover tuition, books, and some fees while you move through the program. Colleges with strong workforce offices, such as Whatcom Community College, explain how their Worker Retraining support helps career changers pick one focused program instead of bouncing between random classes, which is especially important when your funding is limited.

Physical Demands & Lifestyle Fit

Auto tech work is physical, but it’s different from roofing in the rain or hauling pipe in a trench. You’ll be on your feet most of the day, lifting tires and components that can easily weigh 50+ pounds, bending and reaching under hoods and dashboards, and dealing with noise, chemicals, and temperature swings in open-bay shops. The trade-off is that most positions offer regular daytime hours, with some evenings or weekends in dealership settings, and you go home every night instead of traveling. If your backpack includes an interest in cars, comfort with getting a little dirty, and a tolerance for both routine maintenance and tricky diagnostic puzzles, using Worker Retraining on an automotive program can turn a 6-24 month investment into steady, locally grounded work that still has room to grow as you add certifications and specialize in hybrids, EVs, or advanced diagnostics.

Industrial Maintenance Technician

On an industrial floor, the “office” is conveyor belts, packaging lines, motors, and sensors all moving at once. As an industrial maintenance technician, you’re the person everyone calls when any of that stops. One hour you’re troubleshooting a conveyor in a food plant, the next you’re swapping a motor in a sawmill or tracking down a fault in a robotic arm. You work across mechanical systems (bearings, gearboxes, pneumatics, hydraulics), electrical systems (motors, drives, controls), and increasingly, the brains of it all: PLCs and networked sensors.

Pay & Demand in Washington

This is one of those “quietly strong” trades. Many industrial maintenance techs in Washington earn in the neighborhood of $65,000-$90,000 per year, with specialized industrial electricians and controls technicians going higher as they add skills in PLCs, robotics, and automation. Demand is climbing as manufacturers adopt more automation and older multi-skilled techs retire. National and regional analyses of skilled trades, like the Skilled Trades overview from the Learn & Work Ecosystem Library, point out that employers are struggling to hire people who understand both mechanical and electrical systems well enough to keep automated plants running with minimal downtime.

Training Paths with Worker Retraining

Community and technical colleges like Big Bend Community College, Wenatchee Valley College, and Yakima Valley College offer industrial maintenance, mechatronics, or electromechanical technology programs that typically run 1-2 years. Worker Retraining is usually used to fund one of these clear, high-demand programs - covering tuition, books, and some fees - rather than a mix of unrelated classes. The statewide Worker Retraining summary from Washington’s Workforce Training Board emphasizes exactly this kind of use: helping dislocated workers complete short, job-focused programs in fields where employers are actively hiring.

Physical Demands, Shifts, and Tech-Hybrid Options

Industrial maintenance blends brain and body. You’ll climb ladders and catwalks, crawl under equipment, lift components, and work in noisy, sometimes hot or cold plants. Shift work is common - nights or weekends so lines can be serviced when production is down - but you’re almost always home after your shift, not on the road for days. If you like solving how things work as much as fixing them, this can be a good fit. And if you discover you’re drawn to the data and software side of modern plants - monitoring equipment health, working with sensor networks, or tying machines into cloud dashboards - you can layer in tech training with a Worker Retraining-approved provider like Nucamp. Their online coding and cloud bootcamps, which also participate in Washington’s Worker Retraining program, can complement your maintenance background and aim you toward hybrid roles in industrial IoT support, maintenance planning, or manufacturing software - always confirming specific funding details with your local college or WorkSource advisor before you add anything new to your backpack.

Packing Your Next Career with Worker Retraining

By now you’ve unpacked a lot of options: diesel bays, rooftop units, shop floors, long highways. It can feel like every trade on this list is shouting “Pick me!” while your actual backpack - your time, energy, and Worker Retraining funding - stays the same size. The point isn’t to find the one perfect ranking; it’s to decide what really earns a place in your go-bag when the storm has already hit.

Turn the generic checklist into your own

Instead of asking “What’s the top trade?” try asking “What can I realistically carry for the next few years?” Take two or three options that stood out and compare them on your own hand-written checklist: training length (3-12 month certificate, 2-year degree, or 4-5 year apprenticeship), expected Washington pay once you’re past the starting line, physical demands on your body, and how the schedule fits things like childcare, health, or caring for family. Worker Retraining is designed to fund one clear program - usually a single certificate, associate degree, or pre-apprenticeship at a community/technical college or approved private school - so the goal is not to stay “open” forever, it’s to choose one path you can actually finish and work in.

Concrete next steps in Washington

From here, the most useful move is often a conversation, not another late-night search. Reach out to the Worker Retraining or workforce education office at your local community or technical college and tell them your situation - recent layoff, UI benefits ending, time out of the workforce, or military separation. They can help you confirm whether you meet Worker Retraining eligibility, estimate how many quarters of funding you’re likely to have, and map that against real programs on Washington’s training catalog so you’re not guessing about which options are actually approved. Many people also sit down with a WorkSource counselor to sanity-check job postings in their region before committing, making sure the trade they pick lines up with employers who are hiring within commuting distance.

Where Nucamp fits if tech feels lighter in your backpack

As you weigh the trades, you might realize that what fits best isn’t lifting compressors or climbing scaffolding, but working on the tech that supports those industries - software for logistics, tools for construction teams, or cybersecurity for companies that run factories and fleets. If that’s the case, it’s worth knowing that Nucamp is an approved Private Career School for Washington’s Worker Retraining program, offering up to 80% tuition assistance for eligible students. In practice, that often looks like you paying $100 a month for 5 months (about $500 total out-of-pocket) while Worker Retraining covers the rest of the tuition for specific bootcamps such as Web Development plus Full Stack & Mobile, Back End with SQL and Python, or Cybersecurity Fundamentals. Eligibility follows the same general Worker Retraining rules - Washington residents who are on or recently exhausted unemployment, received a layoff notice, are displaced homemakers or formerly self-employed due to economic conditions, active-duty with a separation notice, veterans within about four years of discharge, or vulnerable workers under expanded criteria. For veterans, it’s important to know that these Nucamp programs can use Worker Retraining but not GI Bill benefits. If a flexible, 100% online format with small weekly workshops, career support, and recognition like a 4.5/5 Trustpilot rating and “Best Overall Cybersecurity Bootcamp” by Fortune fits your reality better than a physically heavy trade, you can explore details and start the eligibility process on Nucamp’s Washington Worker Retraining scholarship page - and still double-check everything with a college or WorkSource advisor before you commit.

You don’t have to solve the rest of your working life tonight. What you do have is one unusually powerful tool in Worker Retraining and a clearer sense of what different careers actually demand from you. If you use that to pick one path that fits your body, your family, and your bills - and you let yourself get real help from advisors instead of doing it all alone - you’re not chasing somebody else’s “top 10” anymore. You’re packing a backpack you can actually carry into the next decade.

Frequently Asked Questions