IntroductionA strange phenomenon is unfolding: high-paying positions in the PLC field are encountering an unprecedented “talent shortage”.According to data from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, by 2025, the talent gap in China’s intelligent manufacturing sector is expected to reach 4.5 million. Technical positions such as PLC engineers and industrial robot maintenance engineers have an average monthly salary exceeding 15,000 yuan, with some critical positions even offering salaries of 30,000 yuan, yet they remain “hard to find”.
1.Work Environment and Work Intensity:
1. Poor Work Environment:
Industrial automation positions are often located in factory workshops, where there is noise, oil stains, etc. Compared to the office environment of white-collar workers, it appears more arduous and less dignified, making it less attractive to young people who seek a comfortable work environment.
2. High Work Intensity:
Engineers are required to stay in the workshop for long periods, on call 24 hours to handle equipment failures. Shift work is also common, making it difficult to balance work and life, which can lead to physical and mental exhaustion over time.
2.Social Perception and Career Development:
1. Social Perception Bias:
Traditional views such as “all professions are inferior, only education is superior” have a profound impact. Parents and students generally believe that technical jobs have no future and are at the bottom of the educational hierarchy, resulting in fewer students enrolling in related majors.
2. Limited Career Development:
The promotion channels for manufacturing technicians are relatively rigid, and most people easily encounter a “technical ceiling”. Compared to industries like the internet and finance, the promotion ladder is unclear, and the development path is relatively singular.
3.Education System and Industry Demand:
1. Skills Iteration Lag:
Under the wave of “Industry 4.0”, the demand for high-skilled positions such as electrical automation and industrial robot operation in manufacturing has surged. However, vocational education is severely disconnected from industry needs, and the content taught in schools fails to meet the demand for high-skilled talent from enterprises, leading to a vicious cycle of “companies unable to hire, students unable to find jobs”.
2. Imbalanced Talent Structure:
Regionally, even with doubled salaries in the eastern coastal areas, it is still difficult to retain talent, while factories in the central and western regions are trapped in a “labor shortage desert”. From an industry perspective, there is a significant gap in employment attractiveness between manufacturing and service industries, with young people more inclined to choose new business models such as food delivery and express delivery, resulting in a shortage of talent in the industrial automation field.
4.Career Development Ceiling:
Compared to the clear promotion paths in the internet industry, technical positions in manufacturing often fall into the dilemma of “ten years of the same routine”. Engineer Wang, at 35, self-deprecatingly states: “After eight years, I am still debugging equipment; the so-called promotion is just mentoring apprentices.”
Public data from a listed company shows that the ratio of technical positions transitioning to management positions is less than 15%, far lower than the 42% for sales positions. This blockage in career pathways makes young people more inclined to choose the internet industry, which offers “fast salary increases and easy job hopping”.
5.Imbalance Between Work Intensity and Compensation:
“24-hour on-call” has become an industry norm. Maintenance records from an automotive parts factory show that engineers handle an average of 13 emergency failures per month, with 67% occurring outside of working hours.
However, the corresponding compensation mechanisms are lagging behind—surveys show that only 28% of companies provide a complete compensatory leave system, and overtime pay standards are generally lower than 1.5 times that of the internet industry.
What do netizens say?
@Netizen 1 CommentCompared to electrical engineers, PLC engineers are better off; they have to do the work of electricians and also do what electricians cannot do! There are dozens of PLC brands, and a plethora of programming and design software to master!@Netizen 2 CommentIn short, being a jack of all trades means doing everything but still only getting one salary.@Netizen 3 Comment
Electrical engineers know a lot, do a lot, and earn little; they belong to a profession with a high lower limit and a low upper limit. Most company leaders do not understand electrical work, and the status of electrical professionals is too low, making it hard to stay long.
@Netizen 4 CommentPLC engineers have too much to learn, and the effort does not match the returns.@Netizen 5 CommentI used to work in automation maintenance; this profession is undervalued, with low salaries. Although the physical labor is light, the mental workload is not easy. Often, a factory uses equipment from several manufacturers, and you have to be proficient in all of them. It seems that it is not that hard, but you do not get respect, and gradually, I switched jobs. Because I have experience in automation, it is easy to switch to other industries, like operating workers. Salaries improve, and things get better over time; it just takes a process.@Netizen 6 Comment
15,000 yuan is not a salary; it feels like they treat us as machines, debugging for 12 hours a day, with no time for dating or marriage, unable to take care of my wife and children, and maybe even losing my home.
Everyone is welcome to leave comments and engage in discussions!