One of the fastest growing job sectors is looking for new employees and offering a lot of pathways to break into the industry.
Carpenters, plumbers, pipefitters, painters, electricians, sheet metal workers, bricklayers and more are lending their expertise to the community to help you decide if a career in construction is a good fit for you.
Partners of Project Connect, the City’s action plan to better connect people, plans and projects surrounding the future location of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA), are hosting a Construction Industry Opportunities Expo to answer any questions you may have and introduce you to potential opportunities.
The Expo will be held in the old Rhema Church in the footprint of the new NGA site at 22nd and Cass Ave on Monday, May 22 from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Individuals attending the Expo can connect with pre-apprenticeship programs, apprenticeship programs, construction trade schools, contractor associations, unions and contractors. Pursuing a career in the construction industry through one of these avenues can offer a reliable path to upward mobility and to creating a better life and opportunity for you and your family.
Many of the programs that will be represented at the Expo are showing strong success. Take, for example, the Building Union Diversity (BUD) program, a dedicated effort recognized by the White House as a successful way to increase the number of women and minorities in local construction unions. Nine classes have graduated BUD with 81 percent of the men and women who have completed this pre-apprenticeship program now working as paid apprentices in various construction trades.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, hiring for construction laborers and helpers is projected to grow 13 percent between 2014 and 2024. That’s faster than the average for all other occupations.
“It is important that we have a diverse and talented employee base to fill these jobs,” said Len Toenjes, president, AGC of Missouri. “Those of us in the construction industry are actively seeking to educate and reach out to potential employees and contractors and are very willing to train people interested and dedicated in building a new career for themselves.”
Also recognizing that some people may have barriers to employment to overcome, partner agencies like the National Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse will provide contact information for help, and the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department’s Intervention and Compliance Unit, as well as St. Louis Agency on Training and Employment both will be on hand to offer assistance.
The first step to a new career starts Monday, May 22, 2017, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. at 2233 Cass Ave. at the Construction Industry Opportunities Expo.
