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Dive brief:
- The National Center for Construction Research and Education has partnered with language enhancement platform EnGen to publish a Construction foremen certification program for workers with limited English skills.
- About three out of 10 Construction workers are immigrantsaccording to the National Association of Home Builders, and many have limited English skills. This language barrier can challenge communication, affect safety and limit professional mobility.
- To help workers build construction leadership vocabulary, NCCER and EnGen are offering access to three months of customized construction English enhancement, which participants can take as a stand-alone option or en route to NCCER’s Construction Foreman Certification Program, according to a news release.
Diving knowledge:
On jobsites, a construction worker may be asked to work as a mason or skilled carpenter one day and as a superintendent or leader the next, said Jennifer Wilkerson, vice president of innovation and advancement at NCCER, a nonprofit focused on construction education.
“It’s great that you’ve taken your best trader and given them that opportunity, but what you’ve simultaneously done is not set them up for success because they need [English] training,” Wilkerson told Construction Dive.
Wilkerson said NCCER first offered Spanish-language training for specific trades about a decade ago, but didn’t see a huge demand in response. That has slowly changed: A year after launching the foreman certification, he said the group met demand for a version of the course for mostly native Spanish speakers. The course costs $590.
Wilkerson said the program has been successful in what some employers have tried for English learners, such as sending workers to a local community college.
While these options can be helpful, they may not provide workers with the skills needed to communicate effectively on the job or to advance in supervisory roles.
“We all learn and communicate best in our native language, even if we identify as fully bilingual,” said self-employed language access consultant Loretta Mulberry. “Many companies report that highly qualified candidates for leadership roles often shy away from opportunities for fear of embarrassment or failure when taking certification tests or manage teams in their second language.”
Mulberry told Construction Dive that he believes employers should continue to look for comprehensive ways to support the careers of team members with limited English proficiency. This can include training like NCCER, which Loretta applauded.
NCCER says the initiative is already generating such positive feedback.
“This program is a game-changer for our workforce — it’s helping our team leaders strengthen their communication skills in ways that directly impact safety, productivity and collaboration,” Bradley Rowan, director of training and development for Houston-based Chamberlin Roofing & Waterproofing, said in the release. “One of our foremen, Raul, has been with us for 12 years. He came to the United States without speaking English, and now he can communicate well at work. This type of targeted support gives Raul and others like him the tools to become even stronger leaders.”
