One fix for job market

Dusty Simmons works on a vehicle at Capitol City Chrysler. Simmons attended Nichols Career Center and Linn State Technical College for auto mechanics. He worked part time at the dealership and is now a full-time certified mechanic.

More students are taking a second look at automotive repair, a high-tech career that is always in demand and cant be outsourced overseas.

For many, the first rung on the ladder is an education at Nichols Career Center, which has trained hundreds of students over the years and placed dozens in jobs at car dealerships and independent repair shops all over Jefferson City.

Dusty Simmons, 21, attended Nichols Career Center before graduating from Linn State Technical College in 2012. He grew up with a wrench in his hand, and by the age of 14 was restoring his first truck with the help of his dad.

That started it all. My dad was a mechanic in the National Guard, he said. We were always tinkering on something.

Today, he works at Capitol Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram on Missouri Boulevard. He started as a part-time worker changing oil and shadowing the more-experienced employees. When he graduated, he became a full-time employee and enrolled in Chrysler school, a series of classes that teach technicians how to repair Chrysler products.

Russell Richter, the dealerships fixed-operations director, said his people have to attend 128 classes to be considered master certified.

Although some do enter the field with the know-how they learned fixing cars in the front drive, if you want advancement, a credential from a school like Linn State is essential, Richter said.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median pay for automotive service technicians and mechanics was $36,610 in 2012. Recent starting salaries for Linn State students were $25,438 on average, with a high of $41,600, according to a 180-day follow up report issued by the college. Experienced technicians can make upwards of $60,000.

Both Richter and Simmons said openings in the field are available, demand for skilled mechanics is high and the job pays a living wage.

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One fix for job market