Photo courtesy of Bechtel Corp., San Francisco
Photo courtesy of Bechtel Corp., San Francisco
In 2005, the U.S. experienced the most active Atlantic hurricane season in recorded history. One of the seven major hurricanes that occurred that year was Hurricane Katrina, which caused an estimated $81 billion in damages and was directly responsible for 1,500 deaths. The costliest hurricane in U.S. history, Katrina forced an estimated half-million people in the New Orleans area to leave their homes and seek shelter in other cities.
Although the rebuilding effort has faced significant challenges, those living in the Gulf Coast region have not lost hope and rebuilding continues. And though the waters that flooded so many neighborhoods have receded, a different barrier now threatens to slow rebuilding efforts: the region's significant shortage of skilled construction workers.
The desire to rehabilitate the Gulf Coast coupled with the region's labor shortage has spawned numerous initiatives focused on training those interested in becoming construction workers. These initiatives, which consist of partnerships between various organizations and local community and technical colleges, aim to help revive the region by rebuilding its work force.
During a time when the roofing industry is facing its own work force shortage, this type of worker training initiative could not only help rebuild regions devastated by natural disasters but also become an important asset for many roofing contracting companies throughout the U.S.
Rebuilding a work force
Recognizing the increased need for skilled labor following the 2005 hurricanes, Business Roundtable, an association of leading U.S. companies' chief executive officers, developed the Gulf Coast Workforce Development Initiative (GCWDI) in the summer of 2006.
The initiative was developed with an ambitious goal: to recruit and train up to 20,000 new construction workers to the apprentice level by the end of 2009. And with the cooperation of numerous businesses, contractors, community colleges and others, GCWDI already has exceeded its goal with 20,421 training completions and 685 students enrolled in training at press time.
Promoting GCWDI and recruiting participants for the training programs is done through a campaign called the Get Rewarded for Education and Advancement Training (GREAT) Program. GREAT training is free and offered at numerous community and technical college campuses throughout Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas.
Roofing industry partner
Shortly after GCWDI's inception, the initiative caught the attention of The Roofing Industry Alliance for Progress, which committed to help support and promote the GREAT Program.
On Oct. 21, 2006, the Alliance authorized a contribution of up to $25,000 to the GREAT Program. The donation was made to demonstrate the roofing industry's desire to partner with other construction trade groups and associations to recruit and train new construction workers in the Gulf Coast region.
Additionally, to help the campaign's promotional efforts, NRCA donated time and resources to produce a recruitment video for the GREAT Program.
The Alliance also planned to work closely with GCWDI to include basic roofing training in the GREAT Program's curriculum so roofing contractors in the Gulf Coast region would have better opportunities to hire trained workers.
On June 29, 2007, NRCA staff and members traveled to Baton Rouge, La., to meet with representatives from The Louisiana Community and Technical College System (LCTCS), which had partnered with GCWDI. NRCA sought a commitment from LCTCS to include basic roofing training in its existing construction training program and provided LCTCS staff with samples of NRCA's Roof Application Training Program modules.
Although resources currently are insufficient to include roofing-specific training courses, the GREAT Program still may be valuable to the Gulf Coast region's roofing contractors and serve as a model for expanding worker training programs throughout the U.S. The courses focus on basic knowledge and skills needed by contractors in all construction segments.
GREAT training
The GREAT Program's training courses are "a combination of classroom and hands-on experience," says Tim Horst, program manager for GCWDI.
"At Baton Rouge Community College, for example, there is a 2 1/2-week-long introduction to construction training where students learn basic safety requirements," Horst says. "This is coupled with laboratory work where [the students] get a chance to use hand tools in practical situations."
To get involved with the program, students enroll in entry-level classes designed to help those who have never worked in the construction industry gain the skills necessary to be successful. GREAT Program classes vary in size but usually include between 15 and 20 students. Training focuses on such skills as safety, construction math, hand tool and power tool use, blueprint reading and basic rigging and is conducted in various ways depending on course and college.
Students often are taught basic employability skills, as well. Before construction training begins, students complete a core curriculum during which they are taught how to fill out job applications and write resumes. Job-site communication and following a chain of command also are stressed during the program.
At the Louisiana Technical College's Port Allen campus, training is eagerly attended by students of all ages.
According to Delano Cline, Louisiana Technical College—Port Allen Campus' Region 2 project coordinator, enrollment in training classes is "across the board—everyone from ages 18 to 50 years old."
And most students are passing the courses successfully.
"We only have about a 10 percent drop-out rate," Cline says.
Measuring success
The GREAT Program's success is measured by how many of its graduates go on to work in the construction industry. Results look positive though accurately gauging worker training campaigns' success can be difficult. GCWDI reports 60 percent of the people who have been through its training programs are working in the construction industry. But arriving at that number is complicated.
Because much of GCWDI's training is funded through federal and state training grants, training providers are obligated to report the date each student completes a certain training class to the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) or the local state labor department. The labor department then waits 90 days before using a student's Social Security number to check whether and by whom the student is employed. If the student is employed by a company that qualifies under the labor department's construction category, that student counts toward the GREAT Program's success rate.
But this process may not always be accurate.
"If a student is employed by a company that doesn't meet the labor department's narrow definition of 'construction,' we won't get credit," Horst says. "I believe we are underreporting how many are working in the industry."
Moving forward
Roofing contractors can play an important role in ensuring worker training programs such as the GREAT Program remain an option for individuals looking to join the construction work force.
Because these training programs receive government grants based on their ability to prove graduates are working in the construction industry, you can help by hiring the programs' graduates. Participating in college job fairs and posting available job positions on colleges' online job boards can help attract program graduates to your company.
"Contractors should take a look at their work forces and dedicate a certain percentage to apprentice-level individuals," Horst advises. "They should use their current work forces to provide mentoring and give [new employees] the opportunity for additional training to develop their skills."
And helping schools maintain their construction worker training programs may help your company, as well.
According to DOL's Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2008-09 Edition, employment of roofing workers is expected to grow 14 percent between 2006 and 2016, which is faster than the average for all occupations. In addition, the proportion of roofing workers who leave the occupation each year is higher than in most construction trades. And with local, state and federal immigration laws threatening to exacerbate the roofing industry's work force shortage, finding and hiring skilled workers may become more challenging.
To help combat such issues within the construction industry, the Construction Users Roundtable plans to expand the GREAT Program's marketing strategy through the development of the Construction Workforce Development Center (CWDC). Once fully developed, CWDC will deploy a nationwide initiative similar to the GREAT Program.
CWDC still is in its early stages. However, according to Horst, there are plans to test the initiative in Alabama and West Virginia as soon as 2009.
A chance at success
With construction industry professionals throughout the U.S. in need of skilled workers, worker training initiatives such as GCWDI and CWDC may become an even more valuable resource. And with continued support, such programs will be able to give their students a chance to succeed while increasing the number of skilled workers available to the construction industry and, perhaps, the roofing industry.
Kaylee Alberico is Professional Roofing's editorial assistant.
Helping workers succeed
Construction worker training programs can take many forms. For example, The Integrated English as a Second Language (ESL) and Apprenticeship Program, an initiative administered by the Pierce County Roofer's Apprentice Program, is an integrated instructional program for Spanish-speaking apprentices working for United Union of Roofers, Local 153 in Tacoma, Wash.
The program was created to combat language barrier-related low retention rates within United Union of Roofers, Local 153's apprenticeship program. Before the Integrated ESL and Apprenticeship Program was initiated, only 5 percent of Spanish-speaking apprentices enrolled in Local 153's apprenticeship program were able to complete the training and continue to the next level of employment.
The 14-week-long program, which is taught at Clover Park Technical College in Tacoma, places technical and ESL instructors together in classroom and rooftop settings to teach Spanish-speaking apprentices English speaking, listening and reading skills, as well as technical roofing skills.
The program has had positive results. According to program representatives, 100 percent of students enrolled in the program were retained from fall to winter of the 2006-07 academic year and remained in the apprenticeship program.
Recently, the Integrated ESL and Apprenticeship Program received a 2008 Economic Development and Workforce Best Practices Award during the Washington State Governor's
Economic and Workforce Development Conference in Lynnwood, Wash. The award recognizes leadership and exemplary accomplishment in a program, project or initiative in economic development.
The Pierce County Roofer's Apprentice Program is taking action to expand the Integrated ESL and Apprenticeship Program to train even more Spanish-speaking roofing workers. The program is acting as a model to bring similar programs to roofing workers in unions and open shops throughout Washington.
For more information, contact Eva Avalos, United Union of Roofers, Local 153's apprenticeship program administrator, at (253) 474-0528.
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