The Associated General Contractors of Missouri (AGCMO) hosted a “Build My Future Construction Career Day and Industry Showcase” on Wednesday. The full-day expo utilized the outdoor and inside space of Black River Coliseum to expose students to construction demonstrations and industry representatives.
Organizers said the construction expo had over 2,100 people in attendance with 56 exhibitors and 41 sponsors for the event. For students, the day began with a safety talk followed by hands-on experiences.
“Today was an interactive construction career day for high school students, they had the opportunity to come and try out different careers in the construction industry,” said Charlyce Ruth, the southwest manager of workforce development for AGCMO. “When they (students) arrived, they were given a T-shirt, a pair of safety glasses and a sling bag. And they went through a safety class because there are a lot of things here that they have never experienced before.”
Ruth added the T-shirt this year was a safety yellow.
“That’s indicative of a construction site and with keeping the students safe,” she said. “Once they (students) go through the safety class, then we had multiple displays inside and outside.”
From there, students had the opportunity to operate equipment.
“They were actually driving the equipment that lays the asphalt out on the road,” Ruth said.
Other vocation-oriented displays had obstacle courses and offered lessons in architecture, painting, hardware tools, welding and even rebar. Ruth said one specific display involved shooting a target with a nail gun.
For students considering a career within the construction industry, Ruth said that this type of event helps to create a foundation.
“They have the opportunity to speak with professionals in the industry to ask questions,” she said. “Students can ask questions such as: what kind of training, what kind of schooling (do I need), or do I need to join an apprenticeship?”
Ruth added a lot of people do not necessarily understand the construction industry, what it takes to enter the profession and what opportunities exist for them.
“It’s just a great opportunity for them to learn about our industry,” Ruth explained.
Seiji Shimbo, an assistant district construction and materials engineer with the Missouri Department of Transportation, agreed.
“MODOT takes care of roads and bridges with maintenance crews,” Shimbo said. He also shared the kinds of opportunities that students could expect to see from MODOT.
Heather Kuntz, a lab supervisor with Capital Sand Proppants, said that her company brought real sand that was mined over by Jackson, Missouri.
“We were just having the kids all make bracelets and color patterns,” she explained. “We are a frac sand mine company and we have many positions as far as operator positions. We are a 24/7 operation, so we are always looking for good people and for people who stay and make a difference.”
Eliana Bowling from Bell City High School was one of many students in attendance. She found knot-tying piqued her interest.
“I didn’t know there was like a whole career that you could go up and do that,” she said. “It was just interesting talking to people who do that every day, like going up and being 70 feet above the ground, that would be very scary. And I didn’t know that that was even something that we could do.”
“I thought it was great,” she summarized. “I got to do a lot of things that I don’t normally do.”
Throughout October, which is Construction Careers Month, AGCMO is highlighting the current construction climate in Missouri.
AGMCO stated nationally, construction employed 7.9 million workers in July 2023, an increase of 2.5% from July 2022. Missouri construction employment in July 2023 totaled 137,800; a decrease of .9% since July 2022 and an increase of 6.8% from February 2020. In Missouri, construction contributed $17 billion of the state’s gross domestic product of $407 million.
AGMCO also reported construction jobs typically pay above the median income for Missourians, but struggle to fill open positions.
“Nationally 88% of contractors report difficulty in filling both craft and salaried positions,” a press release said. “In Missouri, 96%of surveyed contractors report difficulty finding hourly craft workers and 100%are having problems filling salaried positions, mirroring statistics nationwide.”
Ruth agreed with these statistics during her interview.
“We love doing these events, our goal is to have eight of these events that happen across the state,” she said. “And you know, we have a workforce development issue. We need people in our industry and this is what the construction industry is doing to help improve ourselves.”
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