Is there an instructor crisis?

[berndo]

I see people expecting a "living wage" on jobs I did as a kid (cutting lawns, dog sitting, delivering newspapers).

I don't think any reasonable person expects to make a living wage dog sitting or delivering newspaper.

My own daughter is discussed with her generation...

I think some parts of the media make their living by railing people up against 'the others'. These articles you read might have been written with a strong bias.

As I said, I don't know about the US, but cost of living in Europe has increased by much more than wages in the last 30 years or so.

 

[SlugLife]

Cost wise, it ranks right up there with flying and shooting.

Nobody tell him about race-cars or offroading.

A lot quit within 2 years. Remember, in every hobby, a person lasts on average 3-5 years.

There are certainly many within the industry who indirectly suggest you need to take every class, buy every piece of equipment, practice 24/7, dive all year including winter, etc. That's perhaps a good recipe for burnout, going broke, or finding a less expensive hobby.

So what is a reasonable price to pay for a decent OW class?

Let's say 2-4 students, 4 CW dives and 4 OW dives, plus all academics. What would be a reasonable rate that would make enough to pay the instructor a wage commensurate with their time and level of training?

I think I paid $450, 6 students, 1 instructor, 1 assistant.

As I mentioned in the other comment, $2700 might sound like a decent chunk of money to start with, enough to pay an instructor reasonably well .... until you start to break down who takes what cut.

sorry, I call BS....

We drove $1,000 (US) used cars, didn't have $300/month cable-phone-internet bills, didn't spend $200 on jeans, etc.

There is no entitlement (which the expectation is now)...

I think you're being gaslight by some BS articles. I don't know anyone that spends 300 bucks on phone or internet bills or 200 bucks for a pair of pants.
Families could live off of one normal income and today they cannot.

The problem with sweeping generalizations is they're sweeping generalizations.

Housing prices in much of the US are simply ridiculous. The idea that buying a random house, and the house "value" is an "investment" that you go into debt to buy should ring massive alarm bells. A house doesn't produce anything, it just sits there, slowly degrading. If you rented out the house, perhaps that's an investment, or if you buy early anticipating future development.

Apparently, people also use their house to increase purchasing power too. I believe the way it works is if your housing appraisal goes up, you take out a bigger loan on the house, and use the extra cash to buy stuff.

Unfortunately, for the people who save money, your savings are being eaten up by inflation which is FAR higher than official numbers. So, you're forced to spend it or lose it. Put it in the stock market? Ok, you're like a minnow in a shark pond, maybe you'll get lucky and grow, but more likely you'll be eaten by people who know the game a lot better than you.

Because this is getting somewhat long and tangential, I'll just close out this comment by saying the next steps in the rant are about the prevalence of loans/debt, central banks/fiat, inflation, and low interest rates.

 

[SlugLife]

A 50's era lifestyle might be workable on one job today, if you could find someone today in the U.S. eager to live like that.

A lot of low-income people I interact with actually would prefer that lifestyle. Working 2 jobs, barely making ends meet, squeezed by higher rent and gas prices. The TV, toys, smart phone, etc doesn't do them much good.

I do also find people on the other end of the spectrum. For example, I overheard someone the other day, I believe they're probably around or under the $100k mark, but they were talking about how they went on two dates and spent $600 and $500. Another guy I know, probably similar income, has a house, several cars, boat, and various other toys. His net-worth though is much lower than you'd expect, given he owes money on nearly everything he "owns." He also has money pouring out the door, such as his monthly docking fees.

I wouldn't mind trimming some of my own costs, especially car-insurance, but there are just some areas that are really hard to cut.

Another thing is, do you expect to be this condescending and crap all over young people, and expect them to consider you good company?

I agree with the majority of your comment, but must slightly push back on this point. Topics like these do tend to bring out "debate" mentalities and contentious vibes. I'd be surprised if people were actually treating youngsters poorly, unless or until they were met with that entitled behavior.

 

[rjack321]

This seems to be an US specific problem. What insurances have gone up for you guys?

Both US and Canadian claims have skyrocketed in the last 5 years. Insurance has kept pace / catching up with those claims. People forget that all those crappy-ass zero-to-hero instructors? They are all bundled into the same risk pool as the "best" instructors. There are only about 2 insurance agencies even writing liability policies for instructors now and they want your first born as collateral. So many instructors who have day jobs have dropped teaching, it's not worth it anymore.

 

[rhwestfall]

My good friend (and SB member here) who is an instructor in Canada pulled the plug last year on teaching. Got too expensive, insurance being the major reason. Hearing it everywhere in the US and Canada...

 

[Germie]

Wow, what a lot of money. If I have to pay 800 euro, I will also quit. I pay 200 with DAN per year. Euros. Together with the fee of about 165 euro per agency, the first courses you teach, you don't earn anything.

 

[OMyMyOHellYes]

The problem with sweeping generalizations is they're sweeping generalizations.

That's a VERY broad statement.

 

[Marie13]

I agree. I think places like where the OP lives in California may see a decline. Dive instructor pay is surely a pittance compared with the cost of living.

Tropical locales, on the other hand, may even be seeing a spike about now, as people want to get out and travel the world for a few years after the restrictive Covid years. Becoming a dive instructor is a way to do that.

Outside of maybe FL, do you know of ANY open water instructors in the US who don’t have another source of income? I don’t even know of any tech instructors outside of FL cave country who have that as their sole income.

 

[stretchthepenn]

My own daughter is disgusted with her peers/ generation...

Over the summer she has 2 jobs. While in college, she held down 3 different jobs (lifeguard, swim instructor, coaches kids club sports), and will graduate summa-cum-laude with 3 majors.

She is a Red Cross IT and earned it by the time she was 19.

Excellent news about your daughter. Kudos to her and to you for raising her well. Thing is, though, your daughter is clearly an overachiever and, by definition, will be disgusted by her peers. Thus, I don't think that her opinion on the subject and her work history are germane to the discussion.

 

[Vicko]

I see people expecting a "living wage" on jobs I did as a kid (cutting lawns, dog sitting, delivering newspapers). I've known people having 2-3 jobs at the same time to make ends meet. My own family farmed by the day, and did graveyard factory work. Nobody needed a therapist because they felt overworked. There was no "participation trophy". No year off to find yourself... No freebies...

Most people would feel happy that future generations are leading a easier life then their predecesors.
Perhaps a bit of therapy would help?