Construction Industry Labor Day Reflections: What the Future Holds
First and foremost, the CCE team wishes all our construction industry partners, collaborators, colleagues, educators, and stakeholders a very wonderful, restful, safe, and healthy Labor Day weekend. Thank you for the hard work you do and the contributions you are making to help build stronger foundations and better legacies for residents of our state. To
As we wind up a busy season - with more infrastructure work on the horizon - the CCE team has been thinking and talking more about what it means to be part of the construction workforce, the legacy of the work, and safety, equity, inclusion, and access for future diverse generations of tradespersons.
The construction workforce is strong in numbers, talent, and knowledge - yet we are facing an enormous skill/talent pool shortage statewide. Current estimates from JobsEQ (Chmura-owned labor market software, a partner of the WA Centers of Excellence) project the top five fields alone in the construction industry, over the next five years, will see 55,041 openings due to exits, transfers, and employment growth (report run 9.1.23 by the CCE).
The construction industry, to keep up with hiring demands, will have crucial planning to complete to successfully diversify workforce practices and recruitment strategies while keeping up with younger generations’ curiosities to seek career opportunities without heavy debt burdens. Read more from EEOC’s Chair on building equal employment opportunities in construction here: https://www.eeoc.gov/newsroom/eeoc-chair-issues-new-report-building-future-advancing-equal-employment-opportunity. This Labor Day, to learn more about USDOL efforts to build an “equitable, empowered workforce for all,” click here: https://www.dol.gov/laborday.
At the WA-ACTE conference last month in Spokane, we had the opportunity to lead conversations concerning the critical role Career & Technical Education (CTE) construction pathways, courses, curriculum, instructors, and CTE directors will play in decreasing current and future labor market shortages. The discussions produced a clear and focused message – now, more than ever, CTE construction pathways are key entry points for the construction trades. In our state, families are more likely to rent rather than own their place of residence. This indicates significantly fewer organic points of exposure to construction trades at home as rental contracts require the landlord or property manager to be contacted for maintenance services. For many learners, the first hurdle is knowing the large variety of occupations and crafts within the construction industry. CTE programs can help bridge this knowledge gap as they provide real-world skillsets and connect points of access to trades careers for students well before they exit school.
Additionally, there are two generations (Z and Alpha) - either currently out of high school or within five years of graduation - looking for more expedient and high-paying career options outside four-year college pathways. “Middle school students, generally 11 to 13 years old, not only contribute to [this] trend but also lead the view that work experience is more valuable” (Joshua Bay, The 74, 8.24.23). Read more about the future workforce here: https://www.the74million.org/article/gen-zs-declining-college-interest-persists-even-among-middle-schoolers/. To learn more about the 60.2% of the nation’s youth workforce (ages 16-24) that held positions in a variety of employment clusters, visit USBLS here: https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2023/60-2-percent-of-youth-participated-in-the-labor-force-in-july-2023.htm
Per the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) raw datasets, there are 1,319 CTE graduation pathways in a variety of occupational skill clusters in Washington schools. Of those 1,319 pathways, 122 construction skill-related* CTE pathways are active as of August 31, 2023. Additionally, there are 12 WSATC-recognized apprenticeship preparation programs operating in high schools statewide. Including recognized apprenticeship preps, approximately 10.2% of CTE pathways include construction trade-based competencies in Washington, which indicates that there are districts where construction skillsets are not actively facilitated. Learn more about CTE programs, how they form, and operate: https://ospi.k12.wa.us/student-success/career-technical-education-cte
As an industry, as we think of those who have fought for work protections and just wages in the generations before us, let us consider what we are doing and planning now to leave a legacy that is more robust, diverse, safe, and inclusive than those that we inherited. The CCE is dedicated to help you make those connections within CTE, apprenticeship prep, apprenticeship, and workforce development systems. Many times, starting a conversation, building an interest in the construction trades, is knowing who to contact and how to reach them. That challenge exists both ways - for those in existing CTE and prep programs, and for those in apprenticeship, workforce development, postsecondary education, and other institutions.
Not sure who contact? There’s a multitude of ways to build new partnerships for the benefit of the construction industry. L&I lists all active apprenticeship prep programs here: https://www.lni.wa.gov/licensing-permits/apprenticeship/apprenticeship-preparation. OSPI’s CTE team is your connection statewide. Educational Service Districts and larger school districts have CTE Directors who can link you to district and school-level construction CTE pathways: https://ospi.k12.wa.us/about-ospi/about-school-districts/educational-service-districts. For TERO program connection and inquiries through L&I: https://www.lni.wa.gov/agency/community-relations/#tribal-interactions. To connect with education providers in construction in the postsecondary system, you can link through the State Board of Community and Technical Colleges (https://www.sbctc.edu/), the Eligible Training Provide List via Washington Career Bridge (https://www.careerbridge.wa.gov/Search_Program.aspx?cmd=txt&adv=true&txt=) or contact our team at the Construction Center of Excellence. Together, we can lift as we build. Happy Labor Day!
*Construction skill-related: the focus occupation cluster may be agriculture, forestry, manufacturing, etc., but the graduation pathway description lists construction-specific skillsets such as welding, sheet metal, iron working, carpentry, etc.
With gratitude,
Christina
Director, Washington State Construction Center of Excellence
