Lee D. Worley
Executive Director of
Apprenticeship and Training
A recent nationwide survey of 1,459 contractors conducted by the Associated General Contractors of America revealed that 69 percent are having difficulty finding skilled craft workers. Despite the fact that the number is 10 percent lower than last year, 75 percent of construction firms expressed their concern that it will be difficult to find hourly craft workers over the next year.
With a young generation not considering construction as a viable career option, a wave of baby-boomer retirements and workers who switched careers during the recession, the growing project demand is dipping into a shallow pool of skilled labor. It has resulted in higher prices and longer construction schedules. Inability to find skilled labor hurts the bottom line when companies can’t meet the growing project demand. The ongoing labor shortage can have a ripple effect on the U.S. economy.
However, the future doesn’t have to be as gloomy as it seems now. Apprenticeship programs present an effective solution to the skilled labor shortage. Tapping into the existing high-caliber apprentice labor force is the best option in closing the gap. Highly-trained and skilled apprentices with on-the-job training graduate from accredited apprenticeship programs every day.
At the Iron Workers (IW), we recognize that the apprentices play an essential role in the growth and development of a safe and highly-trained workforce. Earn-while-you-learn apprenticeship programs help ironworkers make a fair wage with benefits, while training to be a journeyman in their field.
We are one of 15 organizations with similar business models, numbers and networks of brick and mortar facilities peppered across North America. The IW training centers collectively spend between 80 to 90 million dollars a year in training a skilled construction workforce and average nearly 50,000 applications every year for the apprenticeship program. We have never had trouble generating interest. We have seen record numbers of applicants in some areas in the recent years. For example, when some union locals in New York opened doors for applicants, there were over 10,000 applicants – the line wrapped around the block. Our doors are always open for those interested. IW apprenticeships are popular because it’s a learn-while-you earn model that allows ironworkers to learn ins and outs of the ironworking industry while having a well-paying job. It is a four-year program. Many of the applicants go through our qualification process and usually about a quarter of the applicants qualify for the program. We average 3000 to 6000 graduates a year.
The IW apprenticeship program is one of the most recognized and organized in the industry. The IW Apprenticeship and Training Department developed the Ironworker Apprenticeship Certification Program (IACP), comprised of a comprehensive internal and external evaluation and ten program standards to improve and standardize the quality of training offered at all local unions. We want to ensure that the graduates are competent ironworkers, fully capable of meeting the needs of the employers and contractors. We have developed national training material on all aspects and competencies of the ironworking industry and established articulation agreements for college credit upon completion. The IW annual instructor training program receives on average over 700 participants.
One main reason for the skilled labor shortage is the lack of awareness and a plan to build a pipeline of workers. Regrettably, non-traditional career paths are often not presented to young people graduating high school as a viable and lucrative alternative to college. They are not often well-informed about non-traditional career alternatives. It is time to stop telling our young people that their only path to success is a four-year college degree. We simply need to do better at promoting technical training at the middle and high school levels and providing them with more non-traditional choices that lead to well-paying and highly successful careers.
According to the Department of Labor (DOL), apprenticeships are a proven path to secure careers:
“87 percent of apprentices are employed after completing their programs with an average starting wage above $50,000. The return on investment for employers is impressive. Studies from around the globe suggest that for every dollar spent on apprenticeship, employers get an average of $1.47 back in increased productivity, reduced waste and greater front-line innovation.”
If you make $50,000 per year versus spending that or more on college, it’s about a $400,000 swing.
I wanted to be an ironworker because I looked up to generations of ironworkers in my family; my father and uncles were ironworkers and a few of my cousins are. I remember starting my career as an apprentice ironworker at Local 29 in Portland in 1986. I paid my way through college, working rebar in the summer. I worked as a journeyman in many areas of the trade. By the second year of my apprenticeship, I knew that I wanted to be an apprentice coordinator. A few years later, I was selected as the apprentice coordinator for Local 29. Later as the Northwest Administrative Coordinator, I worked with apprenticeship coordinators to manage apprenticeship issues and encouraged them to be active in their state council meetings. I felt an urgent need to educate our young people about great careers in the skilled trades.
Now, I hope to continue to make a difference doing what I do every day in the Iron Workers (IW)ironworkers’ union Apprenticeship and Training Dept. And most recently, as part of a national effort to bring career-based solutions to the skilled labor shortage, serving on the Dept. of Labor’s Advisory Committee on Apprenticeship.
May the experience and success of time-tested, earn-while-you-learn apprenticeship models, such as the IW apprenticeship program, serve as a valuable resource for the Department’s initiatives.
See our blog hosted on the Department of Labor National Apprenticeship Week website
For more information, please visit ironworkers.org