The demand for highway construction, maintenance, and operations workers is growing while the industry is experiencing a revolution of emerging technologies that will require new skills. To attract and retain workers in the contracting workforce, new resources are available to help compete with other industries and demonstrate the value of a career in transportation.
One such resource is a highway construction workforce development playbook from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) called Identify, Train, Place. The playbook is aimed at helping state and local agencies identify, train, and place workers in the contracting workforce to meet resource needs to deliver highway construction jobs. The playbook condenses the lessons learned from a pilot project into simple, repeatable “plays” that others can use.
In addition to the playbook, FHWA developed a comprehensive outreach campaign called Roads To Your Future. The campaign includes free messaging and marketing materials to help recruit the next generation of highway construction workers. Many of the materials can be customized with local information to market open jobs and training to potential applicants.
Increasing the contracting construction workforce can help communities thrive. It also offers an opportunity to recruit minorities and women to jobs that can change their lives, and the lives of their families, for the better.