Jill Schiff, the chief operating officer of the Associated Construction Contractors of New Jersey, said the group knows exactly the type of worker it is looking to attract at its annual Construction Industry Career Day: Someone who can see all the trades have to offer.
Good pay, good benefits — and strong opportunities to grow along a career path, for starters.
“We want someone who comes to this event and says, ‘This is what I’ve been looking for,’” she said.
The good news for both the unions and the potential union workers: That can be almost anyone.
“We’re looking for anyone that’s interested in learning about careers in construction,” she said. “We love someone with a little bit of work experience who may not be satisfied with what they have. It can be the underemployed or the unemployed. It can be veterans, students or parents.
“It’s anyone who is looking for a new path, because we have a lot of options.”
Those options will be on display this afternoon and tonight (from 3-7 p.m.) at the New Jersey Convention & Exposition Center in Edison. Walk-ins are welcome.
On Wednesday, the ACCNJ will have part two of its program, when more than 2,500 students (and their chaperones) from more than 80 schools will head to the center. This event, which did signups through school systems, no longer is accepting reservations.
By the end of the event, Schiff is hopeful that the CICD will have reached its goal: To create a much-needed workforce pipeline for today and the future.
Schiff recently spoke with BINJE about the ACCNJ’s Construction Industry Career Day and the state of the industry. Here’s a look at the conversation:
BINJE: New Jersey is as strong of a union state as there is the country — yet there still are misperceptions about being a union member. Is that part of what this day is all about?
Jill Schiff: Absolutely. We have our Construction Industry Career Day every year after Memorial Day weekend. We feel it’s a good time to explain all the benefits of being in a union. The union construction industry can be a very rewarding opportunity for individuals.
It has wonderful pay and incredible benefits, such as great health care and a pension. There’s a lot that comes with it, including a lot of support that you receive from the unions themselves.
BINJE: How so? Detail the relationship with the union.
JS: It’s not just bringing somebody in and putting them to work and then having them go home at the end of the day. This is a group. You have monthly membership meetings where you talk about all sorts of things, including career opportunities.
For the unions, it’s about recruiting, retaining and elevating people within the union. They want to see people move up, whether it’s into positions of leadership, such as becoming superintendents on job sites, or moving into the training centers and becoming an educator.
There are so many different paths within the construction industry, especially the union construction industry, that we feel people don’t know about. We’re hoping to expose people to them.
BINJE: How does that outreach work?
JS: This year, we’ve really been focusing on getting the word out with a big grassroots effort. We’ve worked with the state, including the Department of Education and the Department of Labor & Workforce Development. They’ve posted the event on a variety of websites. We’ve reached out to public libraries and, this year, we started sending it out to the food banks. We thought that might be a good avenue for spreading the word about this opportunity for good-paying jobs and careers.
BINJE: Let’s talk about those opportunities. As a sector, construction was up 6% last year. Do you expect that growth to continue — and, if so, why?
JS: It’s too early to tell. There’s obviously the Gateway Tunnel project up north, but we’ve seen an uptick of work in South Jersey, too. And in some unexpected areas. There’s a lot of push right now for data centers, which could be big there.
New Jersey’s infrastructure, as has been talked about many times in various arenas, is failing miserably. So, there is always going to be a need for craft workers. Unions have to be prepared for the future. There has to be a clear and concise pipeline of people coming into the industry.
BINJE: Is there a demographic or age group that you’re really focused on?
JS: All are welcome. And we expect walk-ups. This is all about building a pipeline. We’ve had people bring their kids as young as middle-schoolers. That’s great. There’s nothing wrong with exposing them to career opportunities at an early age.
BINJE: Speaking of students, talk about the event Wednesday that’s geared toward high school kids.
JS: We’ll have students from all over the state, from the Atlantic County Institute of Technology all the way up to Sussex County.
BINJE: Are these kids ready to join a union — or just ready to get more information about joining a union?
JS: It’s a good mix. Some schools are really focused. Barringer High School (in Newark) has 30 students coming from their carpentry program. And then you have comprehensive high schools, like the Freehold Regional High School District, which prescreens their kids. They’ll only bring those that are truly interested in learning more about this as a career path.
BINJE: Last question: Joining a union — what does that entail?
JS: It varies from union to union, but, for the most part, they will fill out an application and be interviewed as part of an orientation program. Then, they have to test into an apprenticeship class.
BINJE: How long is an apprenticeship?
JS: The timeline is different for every union. Apprentices can run anywhere from three to five years. But it’s an earn-while-you-learn structure. And there’s flexibility. You could be going to work during the day, taking classes at night — or you could be taking two weeks of classes and then going out to work. Each union is slightly different.
We encourage anyone and everyone to come out and learn more.
