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The TIA estimates over 200,000 broadband job openings are needed to build and maintain the broadband networks throughout and following the BEAD program.
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A broadband technician expert, Keith Busby, has worked in broadband for decades, adapting to new technologies from dial-up to fiber.
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Busby has found a 'bond' with his union, which has enabled him to turn a job into a lifelong career
As people increasingly look to trade jobs in pursuit of more financial stability (without debilitating debt), one role worth considering is the broadband technician, according to Keith Busby.
Currently a service technician for AT&T, Busby largely works on fiber installation, maintenance and splicing. He's an industry veteran with over two decades of experience and has watched telecom technology evolve from the dial-up days to the fiber-optic frenzy that has become the bedrock of modern internet today.
“I did it all,” he recalled — calling his technician crew in those days the one-stop-shop “geek squad” for all internet problems.
Through that evolution, he has seen firsthand how crucial adaptability is in the field.
This is an abbreviated version of an article originally posted on Broadband Nation's Learning Center, Fierce Network's sister publication. Be sure to read the original.
“The technology changes, the equipment's changing, the testing equipment is changing. You have to be open to that,” he advised while sitting down with us for an interview. “If you don't like change, [broadband] is probably not for you.”
But for those ready to adapt to the evolving ecosystem and eager to solve hands-on problems, he believes the position offers more than a simple summer job.
“I raised five kids on this. So, it is a difference between a job and a career,” he said. “If you get a good opportunity in this field, give it your best because it'll take care of you. I’ve lived a comfortable life, and I'm thankful.”
'A union is a bond’
For Busby, a big part of what has kept him around in the industry is having a unionized position through the Communications Workers of America (CWA).
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“You have the means to make something that the company may want to pay you as a job, a career,” he argued, saying that in many cases, companies elect profits over investment in employees. Or, when the support is there, sustaining it becomes an issue without a protocol of transparency and accountability.
“What people don’t understand outside of a union is that a union is a bond. And I think the income and the benefits allow it to become a career.”
While on a surface level, a big union benefit is having a well-defined trajectory for pay raises and PTO packages, it also sets up “clear rules of engagement.” This means having contractual protection in place for anything from a workplace disagreement all the way to unfair treatment from a manager.
Busby also clarified that these protections aren’t in place for employees to abuse. “We police our own in most effective unions,” he explained. “When I first started, if you did some shoddy work” and someone ended up having to fix it, “the next day... it was on your desk: don’t do this again.”
This support structure builds thorough, skilled workers, who can keep evolving with the technology of the time — and that is a big part of the job, according to Busby.
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He called to mind the countless times throughout the years when a new technology was dropped at his disk. “Here’s a new piece of equipment, figure it out,” he recollected in laughter. While you may be sent to training, you won’t get handed the play-by-play on how it all works, he added.
This is another reason why having people there who are invested in your growth goes such a long way, voiced Busby. “With the union, you say: we are family, and we deserve to be treated as such.”
Read more about the broadband industry on Broadband Nation's Learning Center, Fierce Network's sister publication.