According to research from the Fails Management Institute, the construction industry will need to add 1.5 million workers to successfully install the volume of work that is expected this year. To meet this significant need, the industry will need to consistently reach out and invest in our youth. The industry must also enlighten our youth on the opportunities available; the time to train and prepare for a career in construction is now.
“There isn’t enough information about the construction industry available to people, so educating everybody about our industry is critical,” said Diane Greene, executive director of the Build Your Future initiative at NCCER. “Build Your Future provides information to potential recruits, parents and educators about available opportunities. People really don’t realize what a great career construction is.”
At a SkillsUSA Carpentry Competition, which NCCER and Build Your Future sponsors, NCCER Director of Marketing and Public Relations Jennifer Wilkerson had a troubling conversation with the parents of a child who was competing.
“I asked if their child would be working in the construction industry when he graduates from high school,” she said. “They replied, ‘No, there are no jobs in construction. We look around and there are no houses being built in our community.’ Construction is so much more than residential construction.
“Here are parents of a child who was in a Career and Technical Education (CTE) program; he was doing carpentry and loved it, but they had no idea about the abundant construction opportunities. That’s a huge problem. A lot of students just don’t know what their options are. When we look at the faces of the construction industry today, the average age is 48-52. What we have to do is look to that future face of the construction industry, which is our youth.”
Getting involved
For our youth, the first necessary step is getting involved with CTE programs. Joining associations like SkillsUSA, a nonprofit organization made up of students, teachers and industry who work together to ensure America has a skilled work force, is another great starting point. There is also Mentoring a Girl in Construction (MAGIC) camp, which involves numerous construction companies and the Construction and Maintenance Education Foundation (CMEF) working together to make young women aware of various crafts and career opportunities in the construction industry through discussion, instruction and hands-on projects.
Steven F. Horton, Ed.D., CMEF schools program director, spoke to MAGIC campers about CTE craft training classes offered in high school and how they could continue their education in a local community college.
“I also helped facilitate the ‘spooling pipe’ event by speaking to the campers about the drawing, symbols, bill of materials and the importance for piping designers to ensure construction documents are drawn correctly and to specifications,” he said.
For the construction industry, strengthening the relationship between the industry and educators through events like NCCER’s Construction Career Pathways Conference in Nashville, Tennessee, is paramount.
“At the conference, contractors can connect with educators,” Greene said. “Contractors are going to have to get involved at the local level with their schools, and this takes a commitment from both sides. Members of industry will have to step up by helping schools and joining advisory boards/committees.”
Horton said he believes CTE advisory committees give individuals a voice.
“There is a need for members of the business and industry community to serve on a college or high school CTE advisory committee,” he said. “Committee members can assist schools in various matters: reviewing curriculum, evaluating classroom and laboratory facilities, serving as a classroom speaker, arranging for field trips, creating student internship opportunities, assisting with supplemental funding, donating supplies and equipment, etc. One key element to keep in mind is the role of a committee member is one of advice not administration.
“Serving on an advisory committee is an investment worthy of our time and expertise, which can produce and increase the pipeline of our future craft professionals.”
Taking it a step further
More than just attracting people to the construction industry and educating them on its benefits, the industry then has to take it a step further and provide them with the training they need to be productive in this industry.
“When individuals master a skill, they stay within our industry,” Greene said. “Long term, that’s what the industry needs. That’s the key to retention — ensuring they have the appropriate skills.”
“Mentorship is so important,” Wilkerson added. “It used to be a father did a particular craft and his son came in and the craft was passed along. We need that guidance back, and we as an industry have to realize we can’t just expect a young person to come on a job and know everything. We need to have someone who helps new employees and makes them want to stay. We need to nurture their curiosity. We have a generation of young people who want to be a part of something. They want to feel like they belong. They’re looking for coaches and mentors, and our industry needs to do that.”
Ultimately, people need to look at their work in construction not as a job but as a career — embracing the construction industry and feeling that passion for the industry.
“Only 26 percent of the students who take construction in their CTE program in secondary or post-secondary education stay with the construction industry,” Wilkerson said. “We have to do something better. Our local contractors have to reach out to the schools. The kids are starting to get in the programs, but if we don’t keep them in the industry, shame on us.”
“I encourage contractors to go out to the schools and give presentations in front of students,” Horton added. “I’ve had people tell me, ‘I can’t talk to students,’ and I think, ‘You’re an adult; yes, you can.’ But I quickly realized people really do get nervous, so I created a speaking template to guide speakers on topics like the nature of their businesses, what their industry expectations are on drug testing and safety, what training and education is required for particular jobs, and so on.”
It is also important to understand sometimes high school is too late to make that connection.
“We need to get these careers into the mouths of the babes,” Wilkerson said. “We have to take the mission down to the third graders and fifth graders. We’ve done career fairs where we’ve taken our construction craft trading cards — highlighting electricians, welders, millwrights, etc. — that explain what each craft is and what the average salary is.
“I have gone to elementary schools and passed out cards and gone back a few months later and had kids — third grade to fifth grade — come up to me and ask for a different card. They don’t even know a career exists until you show them. If we want to get to the parents, we have to get to the children. We have to start the conversation because, typically, parents are having conversations with their kids about what they want to be when they grow up when they’re in fifth grade or sixth grade. We need to make careers in construction part of that conversation.”
“Is there a magic bullet?” Greene asked. “No, there isn’t. However, I think it’s going to take every little thing we do adding up to fill the needs of this industry.”
“I know in my heart of hearts when we get people involved, we meet needs,” Horton added. “When we just talk about it and don’t do anything, we don’t get anywhere.”
For more information and to get involved, visit http://byf.org or call (888) 622-3720, or visit www.cmefhouston.org or call (281) 478-3900.
