An Introduction To Plumber Training Courses

We often read in the press of the salaries that the Plumbing trade is achieving. It is this need for trained Plumbers that has led to salaries of 30-70k p.a. being advertised. Is this really a fib - or is this in fact accurate? For an experienced Plumber, this amount of salary is both realistic and feasible. Salaries of 70-100k p.a. are achievable, but these appear to be the area of the self-employed Plumbers rather than those who take the more familiar working methods.

To be fair being with a regular employer often results in working from Monday to Friday, 9am to 6pm as standard. Normal remuneration such as holiday pay and sickness allowance, along with wages of between 15k and 30K p.a., are usual from UK companies in this area. The self-employed person can generally achieve higher incomes than those available from the traditional approach, but would need to consider working 'out of hours' - and probably longer than the typical 9am-6pm Mon-Fri model. This is especially the case where self-employed plumbers have opted to work in the domestic market, where their clients are at work during the day - requiring evening and weekend visits.

Around which is the question of self employment which appears to fit some people. The inclusion of key elements such as utilising good 'business sense', covering areas such as advertising and marketing and getting your own cost-per-hour correct is integral to the picture. Furthermore, additional costs such as materials and transport, along with legal and accountancy fees will need to be paid. While these costs can mount up, so too do the benefits, however the costs should always remain a smaller part of the income generated. And the positives virtually always beat the downsides!

From the outset it's the double offer of teaching them from experience and covering most of their working needs that Student Entrants are looking for in employment. Alternatively, the Self Employed Entrant needs to quickly establish those certificates that they will rely on in industry. Having said that, we should bear in mind that the majority of self-employed workers tend to migrate towards the narrower 'domestic' market, rather than the commercial sector. (Not all of them, but the main do!)

With reference to education in Plumbing, there is a likeness needed by each part of the industry in relation to the certification elements. A key debate however comes into play when considering the issue of NVQ's (SVQ's in Scotland.)

From the beginning the Student Entrant instead of the Self Employed Entrant is much more reliant upon the NVQ requirements. The Self Employed Entrant will often call upon a wider range of certifications right from the outset; in order to satisfy their perceived client's requirements. The self employed person needs to consider the wishes of their household clients and use the relative domestic-centred qualifications to satisfy them. In a similar way to an apprenticeship the Student Entrant will, once the core learning tools have been learned, enter the workplace and be able to carry on the NVQ element of their study. Considerable savings potential exists to the Student Entrant by taking on this cheaper form of study. It is fair to say that long before the Student Entrant the Self Employed Entrant can gain financial benefits through establishing certifications faster and by being more commercially motivated.

It is the required financial rewards that drive the urgency of clear careers discussions, whether they are overall study or certification requirements. It would generate serious hardship, for example, for an adult requiring 20k p.a. (to provide for their family,) to go back to college and spend 3 years in low-paid apprenticeship work. Furthermore, many Student Entrants have their studies paid for them whereas the self-employed students fund the variety of course themselves. For self-employed people these costs are set by the course structure and the level of certification sought and can end up between 3k-10k+.

The study process is often split with Student Entrants studying at recognised further-education colleges whereas the mature Self Employed Entrants going for a wider range of private run technical schools. Commercially oriented plumbing course companies will provide an established path of training which ultimately leads into recognised skill-sets and qualifications. The situation whereby Self Employed Entrants can continue with their current job and maintain their financial position remains one of the core advantages of training in evening, part-time or self study classes. With so many colleges at hand, the key is to secure as many with technical data sources and gather them. To review your options why not book mark this page (CTRL-D) and you can come back and review the links and adverts we have provided for you.

Plumbers 'marketability' is often increased through the use of additional courses. Key certificates in areas such as Gas, Green Energy and Electrical training can be provided by these courses. Forming part of the common domestic and commercial heating system, Plumbers have often opted for Gas Training.

It is with its main subjects, alongside added NVQ's, that result in Gas Training being viewed as a technical program. It also features many options for on-going training, especially for those who trained as a plumber first and are now looking at some extra skills to add to their stable. It could be said that the blend of training covering Plumbing/Gas training is better matched to the mature student. The path of focussing on the core subjects and at the same time dropping the NVQ's seems to favour the Mature Student.

It is from this mix of training methods that the self-employed professional appears to benefit. There is a great empathy for earning money whilst learning a wider range of work skill sets. This further enhances their commercial offering, instead of sub-contracting key skills to a third party. Of equal concern is the lowering of customer value as they have to wait for essentials to be handled by others and the reduction of the overall earning potential that ensues from sub-contraction. The more skilled a plumber is in their job role - the more that they have to offer their client base.

In retrospect, the Self Employed Entrant has the potential to achieve a much higher and more readily available income stream than Student Entrant, but to do so they need to develop both their business skills and achieve a broader range of certifications. Note: This information deals with industry requirements and policies for the UK market alone.

Copyright 2009 Scott Edwards. Hop over to Plumbing Courses UK or www.CareerRetraining.co.uk/pcaret.html.