For skilled-trades workers, continuous learning is a career necessity which opens doors to new opportunities by future-proofing their skills—and as construction companies are beginning to embrace digital transformation, it’s more important than ever for their workers to continue to learn about the landscape of new technologies, processes and implementations.
The good news is that many tradespeople already see the value in on-the-job learning and dynamic credentials and are intrinsically motivated to upskill, putting the onus on employers and education institutions to ramp up access to these opportunities. Recently, the National Fire Protection Association released its Industry Trends Survey providing insights on the state of labor, training and technology in the trades. The survey shows that professional development is trending upward, with over half of workers planning to participate in more trainings than last year and 42% planning to increase the number of certifications they earn this year. Of those workers surveyed, 24% also expect to see employers allocate more of their 2024 budgets to training—a cause that workers are clearly ready to embrace.
PREP FOR A DIGITAL FUTURE
According to Deloitte’s 2024 Engineering and Construction Industry Outlook, sustainable practices and technology advancements are the factors most likely to shape the industry this year. The report notes that the energy and construction industries have been moving more slowly towards digitization compared to other sectors, but disruptive technologies like generative AI are accelerating the pace of digital transformation. It’s becoming clearer to construction leaders that adopting industry-specific digital tools and harnessing the power of certain data can produce a host of positive outcomes, from greener builds to lower costs to increased quality and safety on jobsites.
Yet it’s critical that workers don’t get left behind as the industry fast-tracks its digitalization. As technology integration continues to be a top priority for the trades, workers will need training on how to best leverage these tools in their day-to-day work and the role these solutions play in improving outcomes. The NFPA survey found that the majority of workers are ready to learn—with 70% expressing interest in trying new and diverse tools on the jobsite. Most workers are eager to work in harmony with the innovative technology that will help augment their roles and are open to taking new approaches to historically traditional work.
A COMPETITIVE EDGE
Across the skilled trades, trainings and certifications also play a critical role in shaping workers’ career trajectories and positioning them for long-term success. Unlike other sectors where it’s feasible for workers to complete a standalone, four-year degree and never look back, the hands-on nature of the trades coupled with how quickly techniques and tools are changing necessitates ongoing reskilling and/or upskilling. Certifications are one of many alternative credentials available to tradespeople, whether they’re looking to improve core competencies, gain specialized knowledge, earn more money, make a career pivot or achieve any other goals in between. Over the past few years, there’s been more and more discourse about widening skills gaps and the shrinking shelf-life of certain skills—especially as technology advances faster and faster—resulting in concerted efforts to offer workers diverse learning pathways to help them stay relevant in their fields. In fact, more than 40% of construction workforce growth in the past decade has come from low-skilled construction workers, driving home the opportunity to elevate knowledge in this sector.
Many of the skilled trades are facing pronounced labor shortages, driven by trends like quiet quitting from Gen Z, the great resignation from Millennials or the great retirement from Boomers. In the construction industry specifically, labor outlooks are somewhat of a mixed bag, with some sources pointing to a labor surplus while others paint a different picture, highlighting the urgency to attract and retain workers to meet rising demand. Regardless of whether the labor market is hot or cool, training and upskilling will always benefit workers as they vie for high-demand jobs and aim to display a competitive edge.
With fewer qualified workers to fill open roles across the trades, there’s a long-term need to entice the next generation of workers to consider blue-collar careers—a challenge that’s proven difficult but that the industry is taking steps to overcome. But there’s also a short-term need to ensure the workers who are currently in these roles can keep up with technological advancements and complete projects efficiently and successfully.
IMPROVE WORK AND WORK ENVIRONMENTS
In industries like construction, quality of work is paramount since employees are building the structures where people live, work and play. The NFPA survey found that by reskilling or upskilling, 52% of workers not only increased their confidence, but 32% also felt safer with the tools and processes being used on jobsites. Additionally, 28% of respondents—up from 25% in 2023—anticipate that digital technologies will boost the overall quality of work by increasing collaboration and communication and improving the accuracy and safety of day-to-day operations.
To keep up with disruption in the skilled trades, construction management needs to consume high-stakes digital training to ensure they are competent in managing construction projects safely and in compliance to avoid costly shutdowns. Management should also provide digital training for workers to improve safety and performance. When employers offer trainings in convenient formats (e.g., asynchronous courses available on mobile devices), they can more efficiently and effectively enhance the skills and performance of their entire workforce at once. They’ll also be giving their workers the desired flexibility to learn anytime, anywhere and at their own pace—making professional development more accessible as employees progress in their careers.
The bottom line? The future of the skilled trades is digital, so workers and employers alike need to prioritize learning and working digitally in 2024 to ride the next waves of innovation and build a resilient workforce.
