What’s Really Causing the Tire Industry Workforce Shortage?

Bryan Call is an Operations Advisor at Schierl Tire & Service, a multi-location tire and automotive service operation with seven stores across Central Wisconsin. With more than 30 years in the industry, Bryan has worked his way up from technical training and shop-level roles into leadership, giving him a ground-level and long-term view of how the business has evolved.

In his current role, Bryan works closely with store managers and teams on hiring, coaching, operations, and retention. His perspective matters because he has lived through multiple industry cycles; shifts in education, technology, compensation, and workforce expectations, making him a credible voice on the realities behind today’s tire industry workforce shortage.

In this episode…

The tire industry workforce shortage isn’t just a hiring problem, it’s a pipeline problem shaped by education pressure, perception, and timing. As technician pay rises and demand for skilled labor grows, fewer young people are entering technical programs, leaving shop owners caught between growing workloads and shrinking talent pools.

This conversation matters right now because the gap is no longer theoretical. Veteran technicians are retiring, technical school enrollment is declining, and many shops are being forced to lower standards just to keep bays full. Bryan Call shares what he’s seen firsthand and why the tire industry workforce shortage is deeply connected to how we talk about trades, career paths, and long-term opportunity.

Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn:

[01:01] Bryan Call’s role and leadership responsibilities at Schierl Tire & Service

[01:52] Early work experiences in Wisconsin and the foundations of work ethic

[04:03] Transition from traditional college to technical education and automotive repair

[04:58] Career progression leading to long-term tenure at Schierl Tire & Service

[07:45] Oversight of multi-location operations, hiring, and team development

[08:26] Retention trends across management, technicians, and entry-level positions

[09:20] Declining technical school enrollment and its impact on the labor pipeline

[12:04] Technician retirements accelerating the workforce gap

[14:43] Maintaining hiring standards amid ongoing staffing shortages

[18:14] Role of self-education and digital resources in technician development

[25:55] Leadership mindset focused on accountability and motivating teams

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• Schierl Tire & Service Website
• Tread Partners
• Gain Traction Podcast on YouTube
• Gain Traction Podcast Website
• Mike Edge on LinkedIn

Quotable Moments:

• “When I went to Technical College, there was four classes running concurrently, and now some of the colleges have a hard time getting one class.”
• “The skills gap is getting worse.”
• “At least you got technicians earning what teachers and doctors make.”
• “You got old guys like me that are getting out of the industry, retiring.”
• “If you go in with the attitude that, yep, let’s do it, it makes it a whole lot easier.”

Action Steps:

1. Reevaluate how you talk about careers in your shop by actively positioning technical roles as long-term, high-income professions, not fallback options contributing to the tire industry workforce shortage.
2. Build relationships with local technical schools and instructors to create early visibility and access to students before they exit the pipeline.
3. Maintain hiring standards even during staffing pressure by focusing on coaching and development instead of short-term fixes.
4. Encourage self-learning by giving technicians access to online training resources, diagnostic tools, and time to build skills.
5. Prepare for retirements proactively by identifying future leaders and mentoring them well before gaps appear.