In an age of mass layoffs, automation and artificial intelligence, few jobs can truly be called safe. But one profession appears to be moving in the opposite direction: elevator technician.
Judy Marks, CEO of elevator giant Otis, says the company is facing a constant shortage of elevator mechanics and cannot recruit enough workers to meet demand.
1 View gallery
In an age of mass layoffs, automation and artificial intelligence, few jobs can truly be called safe
(Photo: Shutterstock)
Marks, who leads a workforce of about 72,000 employees, told Business Insider that the number of field workers employed by Otis has risen by 12.5% over the past six years. According to estimates from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment of elevator and escalator installers and repairers is expected to grow by 5% between 2024 and 2034, above the average for all occupations.
The job includes far more than installing elevators and escalators. Technicians are also responsible for maintaining and repairing equipment, a task that requires technical training, physical work and on-site judgment.
In some markets, including Japan, Marks said recruitment has become especially difficult because of a shrinking population alongside growing demand for renovation and construction.
Why robots are not replacing them yet
Elevator mechanics also have less reason to fear automation in the near future.
Because the industry is highly regulated in most countries, Marks said a human presence remains essential. The role requires years of training, physical skill and hands-on work that has not been easy for robots to replace.
“It’s a true craft profession,” Marks said.
She added that elevator mechanics tend to remain in the trade for decades. At Otis, she said, the company has roughly the same number of mechanics with zero to five years of experience as it does workers who have been with the company for more than 30 years.
“We’re not seeing the end approaching,” Marks said, referring to the trend in which older workers are pushed out or struggle to remain in other professions. “Most of them stay in the profession for their entire lives, and many of them are second and third generation in the industry.”
Training starts young
In the United States, Otis elevator mechanics are represented by a multi-employer union.
Marks said the system offers apprenticeships to young people starting at age 18. They work at Otis during the day as assistants and attend elevator service school in the evening. After a four-year apprenticeship and passing a mechanic exam, they receive certified journeyman status in the trade.
The pay can be significant. According to BLS data, elevator and escalator installers and repairers earned the highest average annual wage among construction and extraction occupations in May 2025: $109,820.
That was far above the category average of $65,360 and the national U.S. average of $69,770.
For now, at least, elevator technicians represent an increasingly rare kind of job: skilled, physical, regulated, difficult to automate and still short on workers.