For years now, reports have been steadily tracking the skilled labor shortage in the U.S. As baby boomers age out of the workforce, there’s a surplus of unfilled jobs in fields like plumbing, electrical work and manufacturing. In April, it was estimated that 313,000 manufacturing jobs in the country’s durable goods sector (which includes the furniture industry) were open.

Glimmers of hope have begun to emerge as statistics show that many Gen Z adults are eschewing mainstream colleges in favor of art schools or trade schools , at a higher rate than their millennial counterparts did. With the rapid adoption of AI creeping into professions with high levels of education—like law and medicine , once traditionally thought of as safe bets for young adults—pursuing a more hands-on caree

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