Contractors and unions looking to recruit more women and people of color need to take the first step of reaching out through pre-apprenticeship programs, industry experts told attendees of the North American Ironworkers/IMPACT Conference in San Francisco on Feb. 22.
These efforts are particularly important now, given a shortage of people to work on upcoming projects funded by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, said Pete Hayes, president of Wisconsin-based contractor Red Cedar Steel Erectors.