Collision Repair Wages to Rise, Says Labor Dept.

According to a recent report from the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), pay rates for auto body repair employees are expected to keep growing, continuing the spike that has occurred over the past three years.

From 2002 to 2005, according to the BLS, the mean hourly pay rate for those in the collision repair industry rose from $16.93 per hour in 2002 to $18.23 per hour in 2005, a 7.7 percent increase. From 1999 to 2001, the mean hourly pay rate for auto body repairers only rose from $16.21 in 1999 to $16.82 in 2001.

Despite the good news of the increased pay rates, the BLS also reports that the number of repair professionals employed in the industry has dropped from 179,960 in 1999 to 158,160 in May of 2005, a 12.1 percent decrease. So, while wages across the country are rising, the number of working repair professionals is declining.

Massachusetts had the highest mean hourly pay rate ($23.46 per hour) in the nation, according to the 2005 data, but the number of employees in the state dropped from 4,650 in 2004 to 4,050 in 2005, a 13 percent decline. Alaska ($23.31), Colorado ($23.27), Nevada ($21.35) and Michigan ($21.28) completed the 2005 top five.

The BLS reports that employment of auto body repairers is expected to grow as fast as other occupations through the year 2014. The need to replace experienced repairers who transfer to other occupations or who retire or stop working for other reasons will account for the majority of job openings.

Opportunities will be best for those with formal training in auto body repair and refinishing. Those without formal training in refinishing or collision repair will face stiff competition for these jobs.

Demand for qualified body repairers will increase as the number of motor vehicles in operation continues to grow in line with the nation's population. With each rise in the number of motor vehicles in use, the number of vehicles damaged in accidents will also grow.

According to the BLS, employment growth will continue to be concentrated in auto body, paint, interior and glass repair shops. Automobile dealers will employ a smaller portion of this occupation as the equipment needed for collision repair becomes more specialized and expensive to operate and maintain.