{"id":18090,"date":"2023-06-10T18:02:07","date_gmt":"2023-06-11T01:02:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/workforce-training-program-prepares-native-americans-for-jobs-in-the-trades\/"},"modified":"2023-06-10T18:02:08","modified_gmt":"2023-06-11T01:02:08","slug":"workforce-training-program-prepares-native-americans-for-jobs-in-the-trades","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/workforce-training-program-prepares-native-americans-for-jobs-in-the-trades\/","title":{"rendered":"Workforce training program prepares Native Americans for jobs in the trades"},"content":{"rendered":"

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The construction industry faces a stark shortage of workers, but programs and people across the country are working at the local level to solve the problem. This series highlights the grassroots efforts helping to recruit the next generation of construction pros.\u00a0Read previous entries here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Do you know of a group that is helping to attract workers to the construction industry?\u00a0Let us know<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

While working for the Tribal Employment Rights Office for the Ho-Chunk Nation in Wisconsin, Nicholas Kedrowski found limited success in helping Native American workers find long-term employment in the construction trades outside of the reservation.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Even with the proper training and a good job lined up, workers were reluctant to leave their communities for long, he told Construction Dive.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhat we kind of figured out was they brought their own barriers, they created their own roadblocks to success,\u201d said Kedrowski, co-founder and managing director of Lake Elmo, Minnesota-based Five Skies Training and Consulting.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

A Native-owned small business, Five Skies specializes in providing workforce training tailored to opportunities in or near Native reservations. For example, Five Skies partnered with Enbridge\u2019s Line 3 pipeline project in Minnesota, focusing on creating opportunities for Native communities and developing a more diverse workforce on the project.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

From August 2019 to February of this year, 200 people completed Five Skies\u2019 training across 20 classes for the Line 3 work, leading some to land union memberships and jobs for contractors working on parts of the Line 3 replacement.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The controversial pipeline<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a> has drawn workers to job opportunities but also has faced ire and protests for its environmental impact on Native lands.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Many who found a job from Five Skies have now moved on to work on new projects as a result of the training, according to the company.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Career education<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n

Five Skies works with students at multiple stages in their lives, some just pursuing their first career, others looking for a new start.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe can provide training for pretty much anyone, but we like to focus on Natives, veterans, women and minorities,\u201d Kedrowski said.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

He described the Five Skies\u2019 four-week-long empowerment program as workforce readiness and career enhancement training. But the point isn\u2019t necessarily to have them 100% jobsite ready, though Five Skies often brings in OSHA 30 or CPR training if it\u2019s called for.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Skills are project-focused, but the overall intent is on career training.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe can\u2019t teach them to be a [heavy equipment] operator,\u201d said Kedrowski. \u201cWe try to get them as prepared as possible as a person.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe start out working on self,\u201d said Nyree Kedrowski, Five Skies co-founder and Nicholas\u2019 wife, in <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>a video promoting the company<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a>. \u201c[The] first component is [called] mending Broken Hearts. So we deal with a lot of intergenerational trauma, grief, loss, and \u2018Here\u2019s the tools we\u2019re going to give you to help you get through that.\u2019\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Kenny Budreau had experience working in the trades as a tile cutter. A recent graduate of Five Skies, he said the Mending Broken Hearts helped him deal with his past struggles.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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A mock interview from Five Skies with Nicholas Kedrowski (right).<\/p>\n

Permission granted by Five Skies<\/p>\n

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\u201cThere were times in my life where I wasn\u2019t the best man for the job,\u201d Budreau told Construction Dive. He took his classes with other members of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe in Cass Lake, Minnesota.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Budreau currently works as a host at a restaurant. He\u2019s waiting for the construction season to start, where he expects to be called to the jobsite in the Duluth, Minnesota, area as a laborer.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Setting expectations<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n

The class includes a pre-training drug screen, which the Kedrowskis said is important, as some contractors will conduct those screens themselves. Doing so in the class helps set expectations. From there, the class goes into lessons in topics like financial literacy.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Construction trades jobs often have layoff periods, which is easier to endure when workers plan for it.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe want to make sure our graduates are fully prepared not only to pass that but they\u2019re aware of the expectations as well,\u201d Nicholas Kedrowski said.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Nyree Kedrowksi said employers and unions for projects often speak to the class, which is vital to workers knowing and understanding the work.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cBecause they\u2019re the experts in the field, we wanted to give them the eyes wide open to see \u2018Oh, that\u2019s what that looks like,\u2019\u201d she told Construction Dive.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n