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CONSTRUCTION
by subcusa.com
The Home Depot Foundation Partners with Girl Scouts of the USA to Launch Skilled Trades Training Program for Young Women
New Experiential Workshops to Provide Girl Scouts with Training Opportunities and Continue the Foundation's Missions to Fill and Diversify the Trades Industry
By Lawrence Dean Regional Director, Zonda Intelligence
The Home Depot Foundation recently announced a new strategic partnership with Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA) to provide introductory trades training experience and career education for young women.
The Foundation and GSUSA will host the first-ever joint construction workshops for Cadette, Senior and Ambassador level Girl Scouts (8th – 12th grades). This pilot program, launching in Fall 2021, will engage troops throughout Atlanta, Denver and Houston, providing hands-on experience with carpentry and other building construction trades. These skilled trades workshops will be led by female industry professionals and will offer career guidance and additional education touchpoints for young women seeking trades training opportunities.
In 2020, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported data showing only 11% of construction workers and 27% of architecture and engineering professionals are women. Furthermore, the National Association of Home Builders' 2019 Builder Member Census shared just 9% of their members are women and less than 0.5% are Black. "The statistics undoubtedly underline the imbalance of talent and roles held by women within the construction trade industry," said Shannon Gerber, The Home Depot Foundation's executive director. "We recognized a natural intersection between the mission of The Foundation's Path to Pro program and GSUSA's focus on highlighting a variety of career pathways, leading to the creation of this joint effort. We're proud to introduce this next step on our journey to preparing youth for the skilled trades, and we're especially grateful to help bridge the opportunity gap for young women." "At Girl Scouts, we help girls discover who they want to be by introducing them to a wide variety of experiences to see what sparks their interest. From the very beginning, one of those experiences has been the skilled trades," shared Suzanne Harper, senior director of national programs and partnerships. "We are thrilled to partner with The Home Depot Foundation to provide this innovative hands-on skilled trades experience that will allow girls to see themselves in these essential careers by connecting with role models to whom they can relate." To deepen this initiative, The Home Depot Foundation will extend scholarship opportunities to select high school senior Girl Scouts as part of its recently announced $250,000 Path to Pro scholarship program. This program grants financial assistance to eligible candidates for trade college or postsecondary programs. For more information on the Path to Pro scholarship program, visit https://www.myscholarship.app/ home-depot-foundation. Earlier this month, the Foundation announced trades training partnerships with 100 Black Men of America, Inc. and The Russell Innovation Center for Entrepreneurs (RICE) to focus on eliminating racial and social inequities through education and workforce development for Black youth and Black entrepreneurs.
For more information, please visit http://www.homedepotfoundation.org
Source: The Home Depot Foundation
CONSTRUCTION Construction Employment Declines
In 40 States Between April And May As Soaring Material Costs, Supply-chain Disruptions Impede Recovery
By Lawrence Dean Regional Director, Zonda Intelligence
Construction employment in May remained below the April level in 40 states and the District of Columbia, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of government employment data released today. Association officials said skyrocketing materials prices and excessive delays in receiving key construction supplies were holding back the industry’s recovery.
“Today’s numbers show that impacts from the pandemic on demand for projects and on materials costs and the supply chain are weighing down construction in most parts of the country,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “In the few states where industry employment has topped the pre-pandemic levels of February 2020, most gains are likely attributable more to demand for homebuilding and remodeling than to most categories of nonresidential building and infrastructure projects.”
From April to May, construction employment decreased in 40 states and D.C., increased in only eight states, and held steady in Maryland and Utah. The largest decline over the month occurred in New York, which lost 5,900 construction jobs or 1.6 percent, followed by Illinois (-5,600 jobs, -2.5 percent) and Pennsylvania (-3,300 jobs, -1.3 percent). The steepest percentage declines since April occurred in Vermont (-3.9 percent, -600 jobs), followed by Maine (-3.5 percent, -1,100 jobs) and Delaware (-3.0 percent, -300 jobs).
Florida added the most construction jobs between April and May (3,700 jobs, 0.6 percent), followed by Michigan (1,600 jobs, 0.9 percent) and Minnesota (1,200 jobs, 0.9 percent). Oklahoma had the largest percentage gain for the month (1.3 percent, 1,000 jobs), followed by Minnesota and Michigan.
Employment declined from the pre-pandemic peak month of February 2020 in 42 states and D.C. Texas lost the most construction jobs over the period (-49,100 jobs or -6.3 percent), followed by New York (-45,200 jobs, -11.1 percent) and California (-30,800 jobs, -3.4%). Wyoming recorded the largest percentage loss (-15.3 percent, -3,500 jobs), followed by Louisiana (-15.1 percent, -20,700 jobs) and New York.
Among the eight states that added construction jobs since February 2020, the largest pickup occurred in Utah (5,000 jobs, 4.4 percent), followed by Idaho (3,400 jobs, 6.2 percent) and South Dakota (1,200 jobs, 5.0 percent). The largest percentage gain was in Idaho, followed by South Dakota and Utah.
Association officials noted that cost increases and extended lead times for producing many construction materials are exacerbating a slow recovery for construction. They urged the Biden administration to accelerate its timetable for reaching agreement with allies on removing tariffs on steel and aluminum, and to initiate talks to end tariffs on Canadian lumber.
“Federal officials can help get more construction workers employed by removing tariffs on essential construction materials such as lumber, steel and aluminum,” said Stephen E. Sandherr, the association’s chief executive officer. “These tariffs are causing unnecessary harm to construction workers and firms, as well as to the administration’s goals of building more affordable housing and infrastructure.”
CONSTRUCTION Construction Jobs That Need More Female Construction Workers
By Subcontractors USA News Provider
Representation of women in the construction industry has been a topic of discussion over the past several decades with more and more female construction workers opening up about being hired in traditionally male-dominated positions. Female construction workers currently make up around ten percent of all construction jobs, hovering around one million women in the industry collectively. And while this is a great improvement from as little as five years ago, many of these jobs held by female construction workers include managerial and office related roles. So, while we celebrate the women who have achieved leadership roles within the industry, it’s time to also focus efforts on employing more female construction workers in on-site positions that are currently underrepresented.
Here’s a list of common Here’s a list of common construction-related jobs that construction-related jobs that employ a low percentage of employ a low percentage of female construction workers female construction workers within the industry today. within the industry today.
Roofers
According to numbers from late 2020, female construction workers only made up around 0.5% of the entire roofing industry in the United States. There are several groups that are dedicated to seeing this number continue to grow, including the National Women in Roofing, founded in 2016 out of the International Roofing Expo. Through outreach and education, NWIR acts as an advocate to help construction businesses and roofing companies understand the importance of diversity within their hires.
Welders
Female construction workers in the welding workforce only saw a 1% increase in representation between 2010 and 2018, according to statistics referenced by Forbes.com. However, outreach programs such as Weld Like A Girl™ and Women Who Weld are working to see a larger increase of representation over the next several years. These groups are designed to appeal to young women discovering their passions, hoping to inspire the next generation of female construction workers and welders. And while there are other important organizations that fight for female welders to receive fair wages as compared to their male counterparts, these groups uniquely work towards building more awareness about the opportunities for female construction workers in the welding industry. dustry that is still seeing a struggle in the recruitment of female construction workers is in masonry. According to data from the online publication Concrete Construction, there are only around 180,000 female masonry workers across the United States. And although that number is small, it’s a large increase from thirty years ago when only approximately 2,000 women were employed in a masonry-related job. The publication also suggests that a lack of exposure to the craft may be one of the biggest reasons that there aren’t more female construction workers in masonry jobs, encouraging groups like Girl Scouts of America to take troops to visit job sites and learn more about the industry.
Crane operators
A staple of construction-related equipment, cranes are used for the most heavyduty projects in the industry. But as common as cranes are on construction sites, seeing a woman operating one isn’t. As little as 0.7% of tower crane operators and 5.4% of steel crane operators are female construction workers. There are several prominent female crane operators in the industry today, however. One crane operator, Jen Mutas of Bigfoot Crane Company, recently recognized the positive shift towards fair representation in the industry, stating, “We shouldn’t say, “Oh, she’s really good for a girl,” we should be saying, “she’s really good,” period. And we’re getting closer to that.”
The National Association of Women in Construction has over 115 chapters across the United States. With membership open to all female construction workers, NAWIC can connect members with amazing resources to help them gain confidence in their abilities and develop more leadership skills. Any female construction workers interested in joining NAWIC can apply for membership by using either the online form or downloadable application to fill out and mail in - both of which are available on the NAWIC website. There are also several membership options available for flexible pricing and membership terms. To learn more about the unity of female construction workers through membership with NAWIC, contact us through our social media pages, our website, or use our “find a NAWIC chapter near you” tool.
For more information, please visit www.nawic.org.
Source: National Association of Women in Construction