{"id":29880,"date":"2025-04-07T15:23:13","date_gmt":"2025-04-07T22:23:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/industry-groups-launch-national-career-in-trades-week\/"},"modified":"2025-04-07T15:23:13","modified_gmt":"2025-04-07T22:23:13","slug":"industry-groups-launch-national-career-in-trades-week","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/industry-groups-launch-national-career-in-trades-week\/","title":{"rendered":"Industry groups launch National Career In Trades Week"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> [ad_1]<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"text-to-speech\">\n    <button class=\"text-to-speech__button button\"><\/p>\n<p>            <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"text-to-speech__button__icon\" src=\"https:\/\/www.constructiondive.com\/static\/images\/audio_icon.svg?482016190122\" alt=\"-\"><\/p>\n<p>        Listen to the article<br \/>\n        <span class=\"text-to-speech__button__audio-length\">3 min<\/span><br \/>\n    <\/button><\/p>\n<div class=\"text-to-speech__controls\">\n        <audio controls=\"\" class=\"js-text-to-speech\" preload=\"none\"><source src=\"https:\/\/res.cloudinary.com\/dmgi9movl\/video\/upload\/q_1\/v1744032406\/news\/text_to_speech\/smacna-career-trades-gen-z-recruit_opsknr.wav\" type=\"audio\/mp3\"><\/source><\/audio><\/p>\n<div class=\"text-to-speech__controls__text\">\n            This audio is auto-generated. Please let us know if you have <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.constructiondive.com\/contact\/\" target=\"_blank\">feedback<\/a>.\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>Aaron Hilger thinks it&#8217;s time to double down on recruiting Generation Z to the trades.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>\u201cI&#8217;m a parent of three 20-year-olds, so I&#8217;m on the front lines of discussions about trades and careers,\u201d said Hilger, CEO of the Sheet Metal and Air Conditioning Contractors&#8217; National Association.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>Hilger said he was pleased when his triplets had visitors to their high school a few years ago discussing options for careers outside of pursuing higher education.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>Although college remains the most popular option for teenagers, a large group of the emerging workforce is realizing college may not fit them. Around nine in 10 members of Gen Z \u2014 those born between 1997 and 2012 \u2014 said <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facilitiesdive.com\/news\/skilled-trades-shortage-gen-z-training-hvac-electrical-plumbing-contractors-thumbtack\/729839\/\" target=\"_blank\"><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span>learning a skilled trade can be a better route<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><span><span><span><span><span><span> to economic security than college, according to a Thumbtack survey. Eight in 10 parents agreed.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>\u201cI think a lot of that has changed because the cost of college has gotten so high,\u201d Hilger said. \u201cIt used to be when I went to school, an expensive school was $20,000 a year. Now a lot of private schools are $80,000 a year. That ROI calculation with those kinds of numbers becomes a lot more challenging.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>To capitalize on that trend, and to help with the massive gap in demand for workers, SMACNA is partnering with the Sheet Metal, Air, Rail, and Transportation Workers and the International Training Institute to launch the first National Careers In Trades Week April 7-11. The goal is to increase awareness of the benefits of choosing careers in the trades for American job seekers.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<h3 class=\"standard-heading\"><span><span><span><strong><span><span>Timing the trades<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>This week, the groups will provide a push on social media to continue to try to advertise the trades, particularly to Gen Z, and reach markets or regions it hasn\u2019t attempted to recruit in before.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>That includes highlighting the types of technology tools that are used on the job, Hilger said, as Gen Z grew up with more tech in their hands at a younger age than previous generations. But first and foremost, it\u2019s about emphasizing the earning potential.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>\u201cYou can actually see the results of your work,\u201d Hilger said. \u201cThat\u2019s always been appealing to a certain group of young folks. And I think it may be a little more appealing now, particularly when you weigh in the earning potential.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<figure class=\"image-right inside_story\">\n<div class=\"figure_content\">\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"A worker in safety gear on the side of a building.\" data-imagemodel=\"177148\" src=\"https:\/\/imgproxy.divecdn.com\/U1xoZRpoqh6NIdDIcMr0Oy0-kA1doUxajJetgrhVUV4\/g:ce\/rs:fit:1600:0\/Z3M6Ly9kaXZlc2l0ZS1zdG9yYWdlL2RpdmVpbWFnZS9BbGVqYW5kcmFfb25fdGhlX2pvYi5qcGc=.webp\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"inside_story_caption\">\n<p>Alejandra Rios at work.<\/p>\n<p>Permission granted by SMACNA<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>The groups plan to share stories from programs like <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.constructiondive.com\/news\/construction-camp-smacna-trades\/733533\/\" target=\"_blank\"><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span>Heavy Metal Summer Experience<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><span><span><span><span><span><span>, such as that of Alejandra Rios.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>Rios said her dad was a carpenter, but she still didn\u2019t feel like the trades were advertised to her. Now, she\u2019s in her second year of a five-year journeyman program studying at Sheet Metal Workers Union Local 66 in Western Washington.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>A commonly used phrase was a big part of Rios choosing to pursue the trades, and something she hoped her peers may consider rather than pursuing college and accruing debt.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>\u201cOne of the biggest things for me is like a zinger that our union has, which is \u2018Earn while you learn,\u2019\u201d Rios told Construction Dive.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>[ad_2]<br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.constructiondive.com\/news\/smacna-career-trades-gen-z-recruit\/744583\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">This article was originally posted at Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[ad_1] Listen to the article 3 min This audio is auto-generated. Please let us know if you have feedback. Aaron &#8230; <a title=\"Industry groups launch National Career In Trades Week\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/industry-groups-launch-national-career-in-trades-week\/\" aria-label=\"Read more about Industry groups launch National Career In Trades Week\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[457],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-29880","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-construction-dive","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-33"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29880","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29880"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29880\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29880"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29880"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29880"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}