BlackRock, Carhartt, Ford, Google launch skilled trades alliance

BlackRock, Carhartt, Ford, and Google on Tuesday announced in a joint release the launch of an alliance aimed at expanding access to skilled trades training across the U.S. 

What’s happening: Through the initiative — called the Alliance for America’s Skilled Trades — the companies intend to focus on three areas, according to the announcement: 

• Building the talent pipeline by “broadening access and exposure” to the trades.
• Scaling “evidence-based” workforce development approaches, including apprenticeships.
• And expanding the partnership by welcoming additional organizations, including trade associations, contractors, and nonprofits nationwide. 

Zoom in: The companies will also co-fund a Skilled Trades Report to help “measure gaps, track progress, and share best practices,” in partnership with two workforce development nonprofits, they said.

• Between the lines: The announcement was light on specifics, and the alliance has no dedicated website yet. Representatives for BlackRock, Carhartt, Ford, and Google didn’t return a request for comment. 

The big picture: The alliance follows independent commitments by each company to back the trades, including $100 million and $50 million pledges from BlackRock and Google in May and June, respectively, and comes as both interest in the trades among America’s youth and employer demand for qualified talent are rising, as Homepros has reported. 

What they’re saying: “There are an estimated 2.1 million skilled trades jobs that could go unfilled nationally by 2030, which span multiple industries, sectors, and regions,” executives from the four companies wrote in an op-ed Tuesday.

• “That means 2.1 million opportunities for American people and their families, who can benefit from good pay and greater economic mobility that skilled jobs can offer,” they added. 
• “No single company or industry can prepare a country for this opportunity on its own.”