Virginia needs
elevator mechanics for its data centers

Virginia is building 13.4 GW of new AI data centers across 70 sites. On a data center, elevator mechanics put in and care for the freight elevators that move heavy gear between floors.

There is not enough local pay or job data to call a clear shortage for elevator mechanics in Virginia yet, but the work is real and steady.

Virginia has 70 data-center sites in the works, with 13.4 GW still to build. That keeps elevator mechanics busy for years: as one job winds down, the next one is starting, so the work does not dry up after a single build.

Virginia elevator mechanics earn about $102,720 a year on average. Data-center work pays more than that, and when a trade is short, overtime can push experienced elevator mechanics well over $100,000 a year, with health care and a pension through the union.

It is the same across the country: builders cannot find enough skilled workers. The U.S. needs about 140,000 more trade workers by 2030 to build all the data centers, and most builders say hiring is their hardest problem. Microsoft's president has called the shortage of electricians the biggest thing slowing data centers down.

The building work runs a few years, not forever — but Virginia has enough lined up to keep you busy, and the skills carry over to every other big job in the state. To start, look at the Virginia elevator mechanics apprenticeship programs. That is the way in. Sources: a national survey of data-center building plans, plus U.S. jobs and pay data.