There’s a common misconception that anyone off the street can pick up a few tools and get to work in construction - even if they have little to no experience or training. But that couldn’t be further from the truth! Just because you don’t need a four-year college degree to work in the building trades, doesn’t mean that you don’t need any skills, education, or specialized training. In fact, you need a LOT.
The transition from military to civilian life can be tough. The military is a way of life, not just a job. It’s a way of life that comes with great purpose, passion, belonging, and pride that can be difficult to replicate in a civilian career. And while they are highly trained, experienced, and skilled, transitioning veterans may find it difficult to secure a career where they feel like their unique talents can be put to good use. Many say they feel like a square peg trying to fit into a round hole.
There’s one industry, though, that is a natural fit for veterans and transitioning military: the construction trades. Between the hands-on, goal-oriented nature of the work, the deep camaraderie among team members, and the celebration of skills like handiness, strategic thinking, leadership, adaptability, problem-solving, and more, it should come as no surprise that tens of thousands of veterans have found fulfilling and successful careers in the trades.
How did they find that success and make the transition? Through a registered apprenticeship program!
An apprenticeship is a program where workers learn a skilled trade through a combination of on-the-job training and classroom instruction. Apprenticeship is similar to college in that it offers advanced instruction from an accredited program that prepares you for your career. Unlike college, however, apprentices earn while they learn and get paid while they’re on the job site. It’s certainly a great choice compared to sitting in a lecture hall for 4 years, especially for transitioning military who are used to a much more active, engaged, and hands-on way of life.
Not only do apprenticeships pay, but veterans can also can use their GI Bill benefits to supplement their income while completing a registered apprenticeship program. Many transitioning from the military don’t realize that GI Bill benefits can be used outside of more traditional education routes, including registered apprenticeships approved by the federal government. What’s great is that this is in addition to the income earned from on-the-job training!
The support for veterans in the building trade apprenticeship programs is unparalleled. Few industries have the reverence and respect for veterans and transitioning military like the construction trades. In fact, many have designed specific initiatives and programs to help veterans make a successful transition. A great example of this is The Veteran’s Electrical Entry Program (VEEP) by the electrical training ALLIANCE, which provides transitioning service members and recently separated veterans a more streamlined way to enter an apprenticeship in the high-demand field of electrical work.
If you’re an active service member who is about to transition or a veteran looking for a mission-focused and purpose-driven career - one where you feel like you fit in and your talents can be fully used and celebrated - we encourage you to explore a career in the construction trades. Learn more about apprenticeships, and get started today.
Veterans and active duty service members, we honor you and would be honored to work beside you.
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With a record-high number of construction jobs available and hiring managers that are happy to hire just about anyone who is able-bodied, you may be wondering: why bother with an apprenticeship?
It all depends on your goals. If you simply want a job for the next 6 months or the next year, we’ll be honest: an apprenticeship probably isn’t for you. BUT, if you’re excited about a career and want to get started today learning and honing a true craft, there’s no better path forward than through an apprenticeship program.
Want to get started with a rich and rewarding career in the building trades, but not sure which craft to pursue? It can be tough to decide and to know how to decide.
As with any big decision in life, it’s important to do your research and carefully weigh the options before making a commitment. While all of the trades are great career options, you need to figure out which one is right for you.
You’ve heard about a career in the building trades and know that it’s an exceptional choice, offering great pay, incredible benefits, and almost limitless opportunities. You’re sold (and why wouldn’t you be?).
There’s nothing more satisfying than a job well done. But what might be even more satisfying is the day off after you finish a hard week’s work. All work and no play is no way to live. We don’t get up and go to work every day for the sake of working, we get up to make a living. A living for ourselves and for our families. And not just a living, a good living.
What is a good living? When summer rolls around, we want time off to go on vacations with our family and friends. We want a nice car or truck that gets us to work and then gets us out on the weekends. We want to play video games with our friends, go fishing, go water skiing, or have the family over for a holiday barbecue. The American dream looks different for everybody, but one thing is the same - PlayStations, fishing rods, water skis, and gas grills aren’t cheap. And time off to enjoy them isn’t always easy to get. Coming up on the 4th of July, it’s important to think about what independence really means.
Independence is the freedom to make what you want of your life, and that takes time and money. For decades, the construction trades have ensured that our workers have those freedoms. The building trades focus on what matters most - giving our craftspeople the kind of life they deserve after a hard day’s work. The world seems to squeeze harder and harder each year, but a tradesperson has great wages, vacation time, pension, and benefits. In the building trades, we don’t make do; we make a living.
Join us! The construction trades have room for every worker in America. Start making more money today without taking out a mountain of student loans that will weigh you down for decades. We’ll teach you what you need to know to start your new career and pay you while you learn. Come enjoy a fulfilling career and the independence that the American dream is built on in the building trades.
Happy Independence Day!
There are a myriad of misconceptions and myths about work in the construction trades: that it’s grueling work, it’s dangerous, and, maybe the most common misconception, that it doesn’t pay well.
But the truth is the building trades don’t just offer good pay, they offer great pay. Did you know that some tradespeople earn high five-figure salaries, and can even make north of six figures as they progress in their career? The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Occupational Outlook shows some impressive numbers for 2021 median pay in the trades:
There’s no doubt about it: lineworkers have one of the most important jobs in our country. They keep our lights on, quite literally. Lineworkers are responsible for setting up, maintaining, and repairing the power lines that bring electricity from the powerplant to our homes, businesses, and communities.
After a major storm, natural disaster, or other emergency, lineworkers are often some of the first on the scene, bravely facing the elements and risky situations to repair power lines and restore power. In between major events, lineworkers are always hard at work, delivering power to new developments and areas, and making sure our power lines are safe and secure.
It’s a big job, and with great power (pun intended) comes great responsibility: the responsibility to keep our nation up and running.
Everybody loves a good comeback story, and skilled tradespeople are about to have their moment, or perhaps decade, in the sun. If you’ve ever considered pursuing a career in the building trades, NOW is the time!
Construction is booming. 2022 and 2023 are poised to be big years in construction, and, thanks to the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) passed in November of 2021, the demand for men and women in the skilled workforce has never been greater.
The IIJA bill contains an estimated $550 billion in new spending that will be used to improve U.S. roads, bridges, and water systems, and includes funding for projects in public transportation and broadband. Who will be needed to do the majority of that work? You guessed it: skilled tradespeople. President Biden was quoted as saying that the bill will create millions of union jobs all across the country. Plus, new IIJA work aside, the American Institutes of Architects’ Consensus Construction Forecast predicts non-residential construction in the United States will grow 4.6% in 2022, and Oxford Economics and ConstructConnect predict a 9% growth in the residential sector. Those are staggering numbers!
For the women and men who have pursued or are pursuing a career in the building trades, the opportunities are bountiful and almost limitless in the years and decade(s) to come. With boomers retiring from the skilled labor workforce and many younger generations choosing 4-year degrees over trade school in hopes of “more opportunity,” the pool of skilled labor is shrinking, while the need is great and only growing. In the current market, skilled tradespeople are already reaping all the benefits that come with high demand for their unique skills - job security, rich benefits, rising pay, and endless opportunity - and we’ve only scratched the surface of the level of demand to come.
What’s more, tradesmen and tradeswomen will be doing some of the most meaningful, rewarding, and exciting work in the years to come. They will be, quite literally, building a better America with their hands. Talk about work you can hang your hat on and be proud of!
If you’ve been considering a career in the building trades, what are you waiting for? The time is now, and the future is brighter than ever before!
We’d love to have you join us. Learn how to get started with a rich and rewarding career in the building trades today.
A new year, a fresh start. Around this time of year, you likely spend some time reflecting on the past year - how you spent it, how you wish you had spent it - and thinking about what you want the year ahead to be like. What are your goals, dreams, and aspirations? What will you change? What will you keep the same?
While the most common new year’s resolutions revolve around health and fitness - eating healthier, exercising more, etc. - 21% of people listed pursuing a career ambition as one of their top resolutions last year, and for good reason. We spend roughly 90,000 hours, which equates to ⅓ of our lifetime, at work. That’s a lot of time! And yet, in a recent survey, 50% of respondents said they disliked their jobs, citing reasons like unfair pay, underappreciation, being overworked, and no opportunity for advancement.
As you’re reflecting on the past year and your career, does this sound like you? Are you unhappy where you are, and ready to make a change? Are you ready to pursue a new career that is rewarding, fulfilling, and never boring? One that you actually love? Consider joining the thousands of men and women who are pursuing a career in the building trades as electricians, sheet metal workers, plumbers, roofers, glaziers, painters, and more!
Year after year, those in the skilled trades report higher job satisfaction than other professions. Why? The building trades offer:
