Despite San Francisco's focus on AI and tech, skilled elevator technicians are in high demand and earn six-figure salaries, driven by the city's aging infrastructure and specialized maintenance needs, with union apprenticeship spots filling in under a minute.

Amid San Francisco's tech-driven economy, a surprising and highly compensated trade is thriving: elevator technicians. Due to the city's aging infrastructure and the specialized skills required to maintain it, these hands-on professionals are earning well into six figures, highlighting a unique labor market dynamic in the "city of AI."

Elevator and escalator installers and repairers are the highest-paid skilled trade nationally, with a median annual wage of $106,580 as of May 2024, per the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. San Francisco technicians in particular command an even higher average, with the San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward metropolitan area reporting the country's highest mean annual wage at $130,290.

This demand is rooted in the city's long history. "In San Francisco, elevators have been around forever. We’re pushing our 125th anniversary next year, but we’ve been putting elevators in probably longer than 130 years," said Greg Hardeman, business secretary of IUEC Local 8, San Francisco’s elevator technician union, to Mission Local. The complexity of older mechanisms, coupled with a scarcity of replacement parts and specialized expertise, leaves few technicians for abundant work.

The competition to enter the trade is fierce. Hardeman noted that the union's recent apprenticeship program received 750 applications, which were filled in "under a minute." Mike Moore, an instructor with over 35 years of experience, described the role as the "SEAL Team 6 of the trades" because technicians handle a wide range of tasks, from pulling wires to welding brackets.

While the city attracts high-tech talent, San Francisco's sustained need for skilled trades in its core infrastructure means blue-collar specialists like elevator technicians continue to find secure, high-paying work. The official BLS figures for annual wages exclude overtime, suggesting many technicians' actual take-home pay might be even higher.