Construction

No matter what your educational ambitions may be, construction has something to offer at every level.  Ready to get to work right out of high school?  An on-the-job apprenticeship may be right for you.  Planning to go to college?  Opportunity awaits once you’ve got that degree in hand.

Construction is a big industry.  It takes lots if people doing lots of different kinds of jobs to build things like bridges, skyscrapers, buildings and highways.

Much of the work involved in construction projects fits into four categories:

• Craft-level professions
• Technical/Administrative support professions
• Management professions
• Design and engineering professions

Take a look at opportunities in each of these categories to see how they stack up against your idea for the future.  It’s all a matter of picking a career that works for you.  After all, it is your career.


Right for you?


• Do you enjoy making things, fixing things and working outdoors?
• Do you like the idea of a “hands-on” learning process?
• Would you prefer starting out in a career that doesn’t require a college degree?
• Does the idea of earning income while learning a high-demand trade appeal to you?
• Do you get a sense of satisfaction from seeing the results of a job well done?

Does the idea of working with heavy equipment and cutting-edge tools appeal to you?

On the Rise

Prospects look good for the construction industry.  So good, in fact, that experts project about 550,000 new construction-related jobs over the next several years.  That’s a nine percent increase from current employment levels.  Industry growth, plus the need to replace experienced workers who retire each year, add up to plenty of opportunity.

Growth in employment opportunities for those skilled in construction trades is also expected, and the rate of growth will vary among specific trades.  Jobs that are unlikely to ever be replaced by technology-jobs done by craftspeople-like bricklayers, electricians, sheet metal workers, painters, heating, air-conditioning and refrigeration technicians-should grow faster than the industry average.

Construction management is one area in particular that is expected to grow.  With advances in building materials and construction methods as well as a proliferation in laws dealing with building construction, worker safety and environmental issues, experienced construction managers with a bachelor’s degree in construction science or construction management can look forward to especially favorable job prospects.

Almost any ways you look at it, construction offers exciting potential for someone interested in building a career from the ground up.

Superior wages

Craft-level professionals are highly skilled workers trained in a particular trade or occupation like carpentry, plumbing or electrical work.  Working with their hands, thinking on their feet, these professionals become experts in one or more aspects of the construction process and represent the largest segment of employees in the construction industry.

Apprenticeships are a  common way of learning the very specialized trades associated with the construction industry.  Some community colleges and technical schools offer training programs in specific trades as well.  These types of professions can be good choices for people who like the challenge of a hard day’s work and are looking for a way to earn a good living without having to earn a four-year college degree.  Depending on local wage rates, starting salaries range from an average $40,000 to $70,000 per year.

What it takes to Succeed

Leaders in Spokane are inventing new pathways for our kids to take the fullest advantage of their educational opportunities.  We are no longer talking about “tracking” kids to vocational/technical or academic ends.  We are building pathways that can provide kids with the tools, skills and confidence to succeed as both academic and hands-on learners.

The Construction Industry Skill panel has brought building trades, community, business and education together to examine and foster this emerging workforce development strategy.  The panel quickly observed that catching a kid’s interest during the formative middle-school years was vital.  Additionally the group recognized that construction is a field where women can and do excel.

As building trades leaders have long known, the skills sets required to succeed as an apprentice in trades like plumbing, electrical work or carpentry are extensive and rigorous.  Apprentices must learn how to be life-long learners.

Construction of modern, high building projects requires trades workers that can master both the latest technologies and the theories behind them.