Major companies from sectors across the country have initiated an unprecedented collaborative effort to prevent an anticipated 2.1 million skilled trades job losses by 2030. BlackRock Carhartt Ford Motor Company, and Google have joined together to form the Alliance for America’s Skilled Trades. This alliance expands on prior commitments to workforce development that helped training programs in 30 U.S. states. The alliance will be targeted at increasing talent pipelines to key, rapidly changing fields like manufacturing and energy where skilled jobs such as plumbing and HVAC installation provide a clear ladder to economic mobility and are also attractive to individuals who don’t have a college degree. In an effort to help workers build skills by working the jobs they are trained for in parallel, the group aims to grow workforce development models like the pre-apprenticeship and on-the-job learning programs, as well as jointly funding an in-depth research report on skill shortfalls and successful workplace procedures through Burning Glass Technologies and Jobs for the Future.
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Emphasizing the vital role skilled labor plays in driving macroeconomic performance and infrastructure development, Bayo Ogunlesi, chairman and CEO of Global Infrastructure Partners, part of BlackRock, stated: “Investment in America’s infrastructure will help shape the country’s long-term economic trajectory, but its success ultimately depends on the skilled workforce that brings these projects to life. Expanding that talent pipeline requires long-term commitment and partnership across sectors. BlackRock and GIP are proud to launch the Alliance for America’s Skilled Trades to support the workers who will build, operate, and maintain the infrastructure that underpins America’s future competitiveness.” Highlighting the necessity of cross-industry collaboration to support large-scale physical infrastructure, Ruth Porat, President and Chief Investment Officer of Alphabet and Google, added: “Building the physical infrastructure for America’s future requires significantly increasing the pipeline of skilled tradespeople across the country a challenge that can only be addressed with collective action. Google is proud to help launch the Alliance for America’s Skilled Trades, expanding on our years of investment to both strengthen pathways to enduring opportunities in high-demand careers and increase economic opportunity for communities across the country powered by collaboration across industry, civil society, and government.”
