NASHVILLE – The head of a new Tennessee initiative aimed at getting youth to consider construction industry careers says the U.S. faces a “national crisis” because many retiring skilled workers like electricians and heavy equipment operators aren’t getting replaced.
“In Tennessee, the average age of a construction worker is over 50 years old,” said David Stansell, president of the new Go Build Tennessee initiative as the nonprofit group officially kicked off its program during a state Capitol news conference this week with Gov. Bill Haslam.
But Stansell, also president of Nashville-based Stansell Electric, warned that only one out of every five skilled workers retiring is getting replaced: “Demand far exceeds supply.”
The Go Build Tennessee program, modeled on similar initiatives in Georgia and Alabama, hopes to “recruit the next generation of construction workers” through both grassroots efforts as well as a television and digital educational advertising campaign.
While aimed at students, efforts are also intended to reach the youths’ “influencers” such as parents, teachers and coaches to encourage students to look at skilled trade programs as an alternative.