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Dive brief:
- Meta has been launched American Workforce Academya $115 million workforce development initiative designed to provide free skilled trades training and guaranteed job opportunities on data center construction projects, the company announced Monday.
- The program, which Meta called the largest private-sector commitment to job-guaranteed skilled trades training in U.S. history, will launch in Indiana, Louisiana, Ohio and Texas this year. Participants will be credentialed by the National Center for Construction Education and Research.
- The initiative comes as Meta expands data center construction to support the growth of artificial intelligence, increasing demand for electricians, welders, fiber technicians, plumbers and other skilled trades professionals amid a lack of labor in construction.
Diving knowledge:
Meta is just one of the tech companies they invest in billions of dollars in AI-related data centerscreating demand for thousands of skilled craft workers at a time when contractors continue to report lack of labor in the construction sector. The company has announced it large investments in data centers in the same four states selected for the initial deployment of the academy.
“The AI infrastructure we’re building today requires an incredible workforce to make it happen,” Rachel Peterson, vice president of data centers at Meta, said in the statement. “America needs hundreds of thousands of skilled professionals—electricians, mechanics, fiber technicians and more—and this program creates clear and accessible pathways to those careers.”
Associated Builders and Contractors has partnered with Meta at AWA to provide training through its own network of educational facilities. Participants will begin with instructions on site safety, hand and power tools, construction math and construction fundamentals before progressing to craft-specific training, ABC president and CEO Michael Bellaman told Construction Dive.
“This transformational effort creates incredible careers ready for construction,” Bellaman said via email. “ABC will use our existing and proven training facilities, including instructors, classrooms, laboratory facilities and tools, which have trained thousands of trades professionals who have fulfilled their career dreams in construction.”
After completing basic courses, participants will move on to specialized training programs in disciplines such as electrical, mechanical and plumbing trades. Bellaman noted that the academy leverages ABC’s existing network of approximately 800 training centers nationwide while introducing an accelerated model tailored to data center construction needs.
The promise of employment is one of the most prominent features of the program. Graduates who complete the application process, background check, drug screening and training requirements will be eligible for jobs on Meta data center projects through the company’s contractor partners.
“This is an unprecedented nationwide fast track to a long-term career in a skilled trade,” Bellaman said.
