By Jenny Harris, Writer, ASA Communications Team
Many of today’s construction companies are dealing with an aging workforce. These seasoned, experienced employees are the backbone of the company, but when the time comes for them to retire, the work still needs to be completed. Looking to employees in their 30’s and 40’s seems like the next logical step, but who will replace them one day? They will soon be the next group to retire, but there are fewer and fewer workers coming up the ladder.
Does this issue sound like your current business situation? The answer may be one you haven’t considered; go back to high school.
Often the tendency for companies looking to attract young employees is to head to their local college or university, as that is where the future workforce is concentrated. Yet by the time a student is in college, they have invested time and money to be there, and thus college students may not be as open to new “out of the box” opportunities presented to them. There is another future leader opportunity available if companies are willing to reach out to students just a few years younger. High school students are still learning about their career options, and companies have the opportunity to show them an alternative to military or college.
One company working with high school students in the Houston area is Karsten Interiors. This past year they have developed a Workforce Education Committee to partner with high schools to bring awareness to the careers within the trades, specifically construction careers. They have begun by focusing on Career & Technical Education (CTE) schools or schools with an existing construction program, especially near their job sites.
Most high schools are incredibly open to local companies and businesses coming in and working with students to educate them about potential career paths. Have you thought about reaching out to those schools in your area to see what partnering opportunities are available? Use career fairs and demonstrations to bring hands-on activities to the students, and don’t be afraid to make it fun! Something as simple as a competition to see how fast they can put together a hard hat will be a memorable takeaway from that career fair.
High school students are constantly incorporating the newest technologies into their lives. Students will be inspired by virtual reality and other training tools. Simulators that show what it’s like to operate an excavator or crane can be fascinating to a fifteen year old who is just learning to drive. Capture that excitement and be prepared for a student to ask how they can learn more.
Another incredible opportunity that many high schools embrace, is for companies to bring OSHA 10 and OSHA 30 classes into the schools. Planning those classes depends on the schedule of both school and instructor and would need to be discussed ahead of time. OSHA 10 could be two five-hour classes or five two-hour classes.
Most schools welcome that kind of addition to their curriculum, especially the CTE schools. Once a student has their OSHA card, that data is entered into OSHA’s national database. It is not uncommon for a high schooler to arrive at a summer job site with their OSHA card in hand, and those students will never forget the company that helped make that happen. OSHA 10 may not be the most exciting class for sixteen year old students, but bringing out someone to do a hands-on demonstration such as a drywall demo will show them the uses that their certification provides.
While it may be beneficial to go to the schools and talk about the construction industry, bringing students to job sites can have an incredible impact on those teenagers. Not only do they see the exciting and incredibly skilled work being done, but it allows them to see the wide variety of post-high school options out there. Outfit the students in safety gear, bring in your safety superintendent to talk to them, and then let them see what all you do on a job site.
There are steps that need to be taken, both by the school and the construction company, to make these visits happen. Coordinating schedules, getting permission slips all take time, but it will be an experience that those students will never forget. Karsten Interiors has found that some of those students later come to work for them over the summer, which is a crucial first step in attracting that young student to a career in the construction industry.
As anyone who has spent time with high school students knows, they are incredibly observant. They take in everything. Often something as simple as pulling into a job site on a school bus and noticing that the employee parking lot is filled with nice new trucks is evidence enough that a career in construction is a lucrative one. Those details may never cross the job foreman’s mind when planning the high school job visit, but the students will notice. Don’t be afraid to encourage the current workforce to show their own children that they make a good salary and have a solid career. They have firsthand knowledge of just how solid the industry is.
When working to attract today’s high school students, look around your community for potential partners in this effort. Embrace the opportunities to work with your fellow companies in your area to attract high schoolers to the trades. While one company may primarily work with drywall, partnering with the electrician a mile away shows that working in “construction” is actually a multi-faceted industry, in which everyone can find their niche. Many companies may hesitate and see these businesses as competition. Partnering together to reach your next workforce isn’t about competing for talent, but more about putting a wonderful spotlight on the construction industry. Companies with different specialties are often on the same project; show the teenagers that.
Companies can work together to bring today’s high schoolers into this incredibly rewarding industry. The next generation is ready to learn what their career options are. It is up to us to step up and show them.
