Day February 5, 2026

If you're colour blind and researching whether to pursue electrical work, you're probably encountering contradictory information. Some sources say it's impossible. Others claim colour vision doesn't matter at all. Forums are full of "I've been doing it for 20 years" stories alongside "I got rejected from training" warnings. Here's what's actually happening: electrical work isn't one job, it's a spectrum of roles with dramatically different colour-vision requirements, and the gatekeeping happens at multiple points (training, certification, employment) with different standards at each.

The Hoover Dam gets referenced constantly in project management circles, usually with the same tired narrative about "when projects were done properly" or "before regulations slowed everything down." Strip away the nostalgia, though, and you're left with something more useful: a 1930s megaproject that pioneered integrated delivery under extreme constraints, killed 96 confirmed workers in the process, and created lessons we're still applying in modern construction and installation work today.

Back in 2019, electricians were headline news. Trade salary surveys showed a 5% pay jump in a single year, with electricians firmly "top of the league" among UK trades. The median went from £31,500 to £32,745, comfortably beating the 1.4% inflation rate and delivering actual purchasing power gains. That was then. Eight years of data later, the story looks considerably different. Nominal median earnings have climbed an impressive 32%, from £30,805 in 2017 to £40,800 in 2025.

You've probably seen the claims. Social media posts showing electricians driving new Mercedes vans, marketing ads promising six-figure incomes after a fast-track course, recruiters talking about £600 day rates like they're standard across the industry. Here's what you actually need to know: the £156k figure floating around social media isn't a salary. It's not even close to what most electricians take home. It's a mathematical ghost created by multiplying high-end day rates by 260 working days, ignoring holidays, sick days, quiet periods, unpaid admin time, and the considerable costs of actually running a trade business.