Is Gen Z’s Interest in the Trades Just a Dream?

If you believe the statistics — and a whole slew of press — Generation Z is an emerging generation of men and women who are trading in their schoolbooks and strapping on tool belts.

According to the National Student Clearinghouse, the number of students who enrolled in vocational-focused community colleges rose 16% last year, while the number of undergraduate enrollments in four-year public universities and private nonprofit 
colleges rose just 0.6%.

As the story goes, Gen Z doesn’t relish the idea of accumulating thousands of dollars in higher education debt. Good wages and the promise of a debt-free education has given rise to this new “tool belt generation.”

To be sure, Gen Z’s disenchantment could be the construction industry’s dream come true. This generation could help close the labor gap with smart, energetic young talent. Although the numbers don’t lie, we still need to ask ourselves if we’re doing enough to capture and hold the attention of this tech-savvy generation with a propensity to scroll on by.

Nuance in the Numbers

Recent articles about the rise of Gen Z in the industry aren’t capturing the whole story. To be certain, college is prohibitively expensive for many, and the rise in college costs is staggering. BestColleges.com reported that between 2000 and 2021, average tuition and fees “jumped by 65%, from $8,661 to $14,307 per year,” according to data it cites from the National Center for Education Statistics.

But Boyd Worsham, president of the National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER), said there is more nuance to why Gen Z is choosing skilled trades. “The industry has been learning to speak in a more unified voice. We’re not telling our story better than we were before — we’re finally just telling our story — and Gen Z is responding. A job as a craft professional can be life-changing. We pay more than other industries, our benefits are great, there is real potential for upward mobility and leadership, and you have the opportunity to make a difference in your community. As an industry, we have matured to understand that we are competing for talent, and we have learned to tell our story well,” he said.

Mark Van Dyken, general manager with Nucor Building Systems and current chairman of the Metal Building Manufacturers Association, concurs. “Over the last six or seven years, we ramped up our high school internships, classroom visits, social media and advertising, and we’re starting to see the fruits of our labor. Right now, there are eight high school interns learning to weld in my facility. When they graduate next year, they’ll be off and running.”

Technology as a Game-Changer

Gen Z’s love for screen time has helped the industry widen its reach. “Technology has changed the whole game,” Worsham said. “It allows us to tell our story at scale.” NCCER, which develops curricula for over 40 craft areas, uses technology to create a more engaging learning experience with videos and interactive activities incorporated into online learning modules. “Education can be delivered wherever students are and whenever they can consume it. When young people are in the classroom, they can do much more hands-on work. Technology allows us to make better use of a student’s time.”

For the Manufacturers Resource Center (MRC), technology helps increase awareness of the industry while meeting young people where they’re at. MRC’s “What’s So Cool About Manufacturing?” video contest connects middle school students with an assigned manufacturer to learn about the industry while creating a video that tells the story of that business.

“We have modern facilities with advanced technologies and systems like robotic welding and AI,” said Karen Buck, director of workforce initiatives for MRC. “The video contest gives students the opportunity to show the community the careers and technologies that exist inside the doors of area manufacturers.”

And the video contest — in which students encourage the community to vote for their favorite videos — allows for peer-to-peer marketing: “When we started this contest 12 years ago, we were looking ahead to the labor gap. The video contest is reaching students. Across Pennsylvania, there have been 5 million votes cast during three days of online public voting,” she said.

Continue Telling the Story

While the industry is making headway, we can’t rest on our laurels — not with the labor gap looming on the horizon. Here’s what we need to do:

More boots on the ground.

If you’re not in the classroom, get there. “We can use technology to excite students, but you still need to get out in front of them,” Worsham said. “If you think Gen Z will choose you if they don’t know you, you’re kidding yourself. Find those rock stars in your company — the people who are passionate about their jobs — and get them in the classroom once a month.”

Be authentic. 

When you do get in front of students, let the story speak for itself. It’s a good story. “Gen Z appreciates authenticity,” Buck said. “Tell them what life is like for you. What is great about your job? What challenges you? What do you like to do when you’re not working?”

Don’t reinvent the wheel. 

“There are resources out there already, like NCCER. You don’t have to start from scratch,” said Keith Wentworth, chair of training and education for the Metal Building Contractors & Erectors Association, and president of Dutton & Garfield. And meeting regularly with people from both your trade and other trades gives you the opportunity to see what others are doing to recruit, train and retain this rising workforce.

Expand your audience. 

Reaching the high school student audience is critical, but we need to make sure our story reaches middle schoolers as well. “We want kids to start thinking about the possibilities early on,” Wentworth said. “And don’t forget parents and guidance counselors, who can have a great deal of influence in increasing awareness of the industry.”

Create an attractive work environment. 

Are there some jobs in your company that could be done at home, at least part time? “We have more people in our office than production facility — from estimating and design to project coordination, finance and purchasing — so we let those folks work from home two days out of the week,” Van Dyken said. Worsham concurs: “To bring in great talent — like women — we need to learn how to make flexibility work for our industry. Parents need to be able to pick their kids up after school or get to after-school events. And if we can create a little bit of flexibility in our offices, we can find ways to do it on our jobsites.”

There is tremendous opportunity in Gen Z. This generation of workers is smart, creative and wants to make a difference. We’ve been doing a great job in telling the story of how multiple industries provide exceptional opportunities for this tool belt generation, and we are starting to see the results. But we can’t let our foot off the pedal yet. And we need everyone to play a part.