Now entering its fifth year, the Blue Collar Tour travels around the country with 10 to 13 representatives from Western Welding Academy, a trade school located in Gillette, Wyoming, that offers a 960-hour pipe welding course. Founded by pipe welders, the academy has rapidly become one of the welding industry’s most popular schools. The school boasts a huge social media following, largely among young people interested in learning a trade. Representatives from ESAB will join the Blue Collar Tour this year, where they will answer questions about careers in welding, provide hands-on welding guidance and hand out ESAB T-shirts and other swag.
The Blue Collar Tour kicks off on January 21 in Lakewood, Colo., and continues through March to visit 30 more locations in (see list of cities and dates).
Feed the Need
“We started the tour because the COVID pandemic forced the world to realize that skilled trades are essential and we have a deficit of skilled trade workers,” says Colton Pfeil, Vice President of Marketing at Western Welding Academy. “With ESAB and our other sponsors, we’re letting everyone know that we have the support of well-known companies who are putting their stamp of approval on the need to build a better generation of welders.” Other sponsors of the tour include DEWALT®, CRC®, Build Submarines, Outlaw Leather, Purpose-Built, American Welding & Gas (AWG) and Dickies®, and these companies will also provide product donations and swag.
“The Blue Collar Tour’s mission perfectly aligns with ESAB’s Future Fabricators goal of supporting the next generation of fabricators, instructors and institutions through hands-on experience and access to professional equipment,” says Eleanor Lukens, President of the Americas, ESAB. “As leaders in the fabrication industry, we must expose students to career options in skilled trades as early as possible. There is a misconception that the skilled trades are a fallback option for those who don’t go to college, and nothing could be further from the truth. With skilled pipe welders commanding a six-figure income, it ought to be a first choice-career for those who love to work with their hands.”
Last year alone, the Blue Collar Tour directly impacted almost 4,000 high school students, including an increasing number of women. Teachers from a number of schools have commented that the tour inspired them to offer additional welding classes. The tour has also triggered growing community support that has led to more school funding and more vendors attending the events to engage with students.
“The Blue Collar Tour helps young people who may be struggling to find their niche connect with real welders who can help them envision their future in welding or another skilled trade,” says Lukens.
High-Value Production
When the Blue Collar Tour bus arrives at a high school, it looks and feels like a music star and their entourage has rolled into town.
“The production they present is truly remarkable,” says Jake Wheeler, an agricultural teacher at Marysville (Calif.) High School. “They connect with students on various levels. I have found that I can teach for years and still not excite my students about joining the trades as much as this event does. I often remind my students, “You need to build the hospital first before there can be doctors.” Without skilled tradespeople, many professions would not exist. The Blue Collar Tour helps students internalize this message, showing them the potential they possess.”
“Our students get to see all the social media influencers that they have been watching over the last couple of years and see that these men and women know their stuff,” says Edward Poff, a Welding Instructor at Walker County Center of Technology in Jasper, Alabama, who has hosted the Blue Collar Tour two years in row. “The Blue Collar Tour helps get a fire blazing for our trades with our students, and then they carry it into the industry. In addition, our female students felt accepted even though our trades are so male dominated.”
