All construction segments—even off-site—are having labor issues. To solve them, we need to send a confident message about our industry to younger students and their schools. That’s starting to happen.
by Heather Wallace
- Modular has the potential to attract more young people than conventional construction
- The author’s organization is working with the industry to make this happen
When I was a junior in high school, I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life. But, I was completely stressed out about my SAT scores and what colleges I was going to apply to. And it wasn’t because I actually dreamt of attending a four-year school—it was because my parents and my high school counselor were pushing me with commentary about how the decision was “very important” and would “shape my life.”
I am not against college. I have a Bachelor’s Degree. It has likely opened a few doors for me, but at a high cost—about $75,000 in the mid-to-late 90s including tuition, books, housing, meals, etc. Currently, that same education would cost over $186,000. Now, looking back and analyzing my experience, I strongly support providing broader opportunities for students, good test takers or not, to make a decent living with a little hard work.
And, more and more, a decent living does not always require a college degree.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports the average annual salary for a plumber is $57,000 a year. Starting apprentices earn $20,000 to $45,000. Master plumber salaries range from $55,000-$90,000 (although I personally know plumbers making over $100,000.) And, a career as a plumber can begin right out of high school.
I believe we are pushing four-year degrees way too heavily in high schools. We have minimized the students who either can’t afford, or choose not to, attend a four-year college.
A teacher friend of mine recently told me how her son “broke it to her” that he wanted to attend a tech school. He was very nervous talking about it because she works in a school that heavily promotes the importance of attending a four-year college. When he finally told her, she assured him that he was supported.
What broke my heart about this story, though, was what the school is doing. As students receive acceptance letters from colleges, the school posts these achievements in a public space. If you aren’t attending a four-year school, however, your name is nowhere to be found. This creates unnecessary shame and blatantly “minimizes” students who choose another path.
But those other paths can lead to a fulfilling and useful life. My family’s experience illustrates this.
My dad attended community college for a short while before being drafted into the Army during the Vietnam War. He never completed college and recently told me he was more than fine about it—he hated his short college experience.
His youth had been spent on a farm, but, eventually, he was hired as a construction worker. He knew little about it. But he worked hard, learned everything he could about the trade from the owner of the company and his co-workers, and eventually started his own construction company. He ran an extremely successful business with a very small crew for over 30 years, all without a college degree.
We Can Fix This
The construction industry is at a crossroads. Statistics from the National Association of Homebuilders show that the labor shortage has been steadily rising over the past 10 years.
Collectively, we have a lot of work to do to replace the many skilled workers retiring or leaving for greener pastures. Exposure to the trades and hands-on experience needs to begin much earlier in the education pipeline to allow kids to explore and find their passion. We need to bring back shop classes. We need to provide more internship opportunities in construction.
Internships are a great way for kids to discover whether or not they actually want to pursue a career in something. My last two years of college were spent as a Communications major. I loved sports, I loved writing, and I thought the perfect career for me would be in sports journalism or broadcasting. So, during my senior year, I took a paid internship position in the sports department of a large, local television station.
Although I loved using my media pass to watch Gary Payton and the SuperSonics at Key Arena in Seattle, and although I loved watching Ken Griffey Jr. hit home runs in the old Kingdome, by the end of the internship I could not see myself staying passionate about a career in sports. So I went down another path and, funnily enough, ended up in the same industry as my dad. Early experiences on his jobsites likely played into my switch, as well as that shop class I took during high school.
Instead of pushing everyone to college, the system needs structural improvements to encourage kids to explore their passions, and to provide roadmaps for them to chase their dreams.
There is work already being done all around the country on workforce development. I am currently working with off-site factories to develop a program where a variety of students (from high schools, community colleges, career and technical schools) can obtain firsthand experience in a modular factory to see what it’s like to build homes, hotels, and schools.
There are many other individuals and organizations who have been in the background working tirelessly to try to create solutions to this challenge. But there is a lot of work still to be done. And, we need the whole industry to get involved with creating solutions.
Please reach out to me at [email protected] if you have ideas or are active in workforce development.
Heather Wallace is the Communications Director at Momentum Innovation Group, a consulting firm that is working with the modular industry and educational institutions to develop a curriculum that will help drive more students to the off-site industry.
