There are some contractors who have struggled for years building their business. They have fought to get good employees and tried to keep the best-qualified ones. It's been an uphill battle. For more than a few, the profits have not matched their expectations. Long hours and hard work don't seem to produce what they would like to see from their business.
These days it seems like consumers try to be "do it yourself" experts -- probably because of the promotion efforts from the home warehouses that imply you can fix anything in your home. In addition, the home warehouse prices are frequently lower than the prices contractors pay for the same fixtures, parts and materials.