The labor shortage in the skilled trades is no longer just a hiring issue. It’s prompting some HVAC employers to rethink what it really means to invest in their workforce.

At Service Professionals, a 31-year-old HVAC company in Union, New Jersey, the team faced the same dilemma confronting many in the industry: too few qualified technicians and too many employers competing for them.

Rather than relying on higher wages or signing bonuses, they looked for ways to provide something more meaningful, an advantage competitors didn’t have. “Basic Capital allows me to offer something somebody else doesn’t,” said Richard Bogda, who founded the company in 1994. “We provide a premium service, and we’re gonna make sure that we deliver a premium service to our employees, too. It’s what makes us different, and it’s what allows people to stay.” 

That difference has been compelling for experienced technicians. While hourly rates across employers tend to offer little differentiation, benefits and performance bonuses are where companies like Service Professionals can truly stand apart.

Rethinking Retirement for the Trades

Service Professionals recently partnered with Basic Capital, a new 401(k) platform that helps amplify paycheck contributions through financing. The idea is to help workers build real long-term wealth and restore ownership to those who’ve been abandoned by the current broken system.

The impact was immediate. Participation in the company’s 401(k) plan nearly doubled, with average paycheck contributions reaching about 7 percent. Among employees who enrolled, 90 percent directed a portion of their savings toward Basic Capital’s financing model, with an average allocation of roughly 65 percent.

Younger workers responded to the idea that the company wasn’t just offering a job, but investing in their future. “Our industry as a whole, is kind of like a lagging indicator behind a lot of the stuff we’ve been exposed to in our lives,” Service Professionals COO Evin Bogda said, “which would be, like, bigger tech companies. Like, how do we bring the benefit packages that they have to the everyday Americans that we employ? . . . It was in that initial search that we found Basic Capital.”

For Service Professionals, modernizing retirement was part of a broader cultural shift. Leadership wanted to demonstrate a mindset beyond the two-week pay period. For many employees, joining the company sparked the first conversation they’d had about saving for the future and building long-term financial security.

“When I hire somebody, my job is to give you the resources and the opportunity to be successful,” Richard said. “What you do with those is up to you. Our job is to pick the right person who’s going to take that education, that opportunity, and run with it.”

Some employers might worry that making this kind of investment in workers could backfire if competitors adopt similar benefits. But that’s not how Service Professionals see it.

“If other companies adopt Basic Capital, great,” Head of Growth Casey Timorason said. “We’re happy to compete on the next level of benefits after that. If this helps the whole industry raise its game and attract more talented people from other fields, everyone wins.”

Timorason added that a large majority of interviews he’s recently had with top-performing technicians at competitors involved candidates fighting for an extra 50 cents an hour or a slightly better commission. “While employers debate the profitability of treating their people better,” he said, “we’ll double down on our investment in them.”

What Other HVAC Employers Can Take Away

Service Professionals’ approach isn’t just about offering benefits or training, but creating a workplace where skilled workers want to stay. And that’s paying off.

For HVAC companies across the country struggling to recruit and retain talent, it’s a reminder that sometimes the most effective strategy is simply to invest in people first.

About Basic Capital

Basic Capital offers a next-generation 401(k) platform that allows businesses to help their employees build wealth. Customers like Service Professionals, a premier HVAC company in New Jersey, use the product to attract and retain talent.

Until now, everyday Americans could only finance consumption, investing whatever was left after covering living expenses. Basic Capital changes that by helping workers finance appreciating, diversified, professionally managed financial assets. As a result, they’re no longer limited to investing leftovers and can build wealth more effectively.