{"id":297657,"date":"2026-06-05T20:42:12","date_gmt":"2026-06-05T20:42:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/297657\/"},"modified":"2026-06-05T20:42:12","modified_gmt":"2026-06-05T20:42:12","slug":"how-jacksonvilles-skilled-trades-pros-identify-workforce-solutions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/297657\/","title":{"rendered":"How Jacksonville\u2019s skilled trades pros identify workforce solutions"},"content":{"rendered":"

Josue Salgado\u2019s life changed once he joined the family profession.<\/p>\n

Salgado traded his career as an emergency medical technician in Connecticut for the financial stability of a career as an operating engineer in Jacksonville.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s opened so many doors for me and my family, financially,\u201d Salgado says. \u201cAs a first responder, it was a great job, but it didn\u2019t pay what this field pays. When you show up a job site, you\u2019re the star of the show. I was able to grow and I\u2019m so grateful.\u201d<\/p>\n

Foundation for growth<\/p>\n

Florida desperately needs more people in its skilled trades like operating engineers, plumbers and more. The shortage has garnered the attention of Northeast Florida elected officials at both the congressional<\/a> and municipal levels.<\/p>\n

The Florida Legislature allocated $20 million for its Pathways to Career Opportunities Grant Program as part of the $114.5 billion budget<\/a> it passed May 29. Some of those funds will be distributed through the Florida Department of Education to provide apprenticeship opportunities here and throughout the peninsula.<\/p>\n

Jobs for Jacksonville<\/p>\n

Kirk Barras, president of the Jacksonville General Apprenticeship Association, says the city\u2019s blue-collar roots are part of the blossoming of other local industries.<\/p>\n

Development at JAXPORT<\/a> and Northeast Florida military instillations in addition to EverBank Stadium renovations as well as Downtown development<\/a> means there is a need for professionals in the building trades.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe buildings that come here, we have worked at Fidelity (National Financial headquarters) and the Jaguars stadium Downtown as well. All that work is something we do,\u201d Barras says. \u201cThat money stays here locally. These apprentices, who are working into journeyman status, are investing money back into the system. That money stays here locally without student loan debt.\u201d<\/p>\n

Skilled professionals live and work throughout Jacksonville. A gas station at the edge of Brooklyn and Riverside is often awash with craftsmen who are electricians and plumbers, roofers and HVAC professionals.<\/p>\n

In the mornings, dozens are there fueling up before a day at their outdoor office while others are hydrating in preparation for the sunshine. Afternoons often feature people securing a snack before heading home for the day.<\/p>\n

Finding Florida\u2019s future workforce<\/p>\n

Danny Van Sickle, training director for the Electrical Training Alliance of Jacksonville, explains tuition for the trades professionals that are part of the Jacksonville General Apprenticeship Association are funded through collective bargaining between labor unions and management.<\/p>\n

State funding provides materials for electricians, plumbers, sheet metal apprentices, carpenters and operating engineers like Salgado.<\/p>\n

\"\"Josue Salgado\u2019s mother kisses his forehead after he completed his operational engineer apprenticeship on Friday, May 29, 2026. Salgado was among 135 people who completed training as plumbers, electricians, sheet metal workers or operational engineers who were recognized. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today<\/p>\n

Operating engineers are the people who operate cranes, bulldozers, graders, dredges, drills and more on a construction site. Salgado\u2019s brothers are certified operating engineers. They encouraged him to become one as well.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a skill you\u2019re not going to lose once you learn it,\u201d Salgado says. \u201cThey can\u2019t take what you learn from you. AI can take most people\u2019s jobs, but it can\u2019t take mine.\u201d<\/p>\n

Salgado was among the 135 people who were recognized by the Jacksonville General Apprenticeship Association on May 29 for becoming skilled trade professionals. This year\u2019s cohort featured seven operating engineers, 12 sheet metal craftsmen, 45 plumbers and pipefitters, and 70 electricians.<\/p>\n

More than 260 people started in the apprenticeship program that concluded last month. Throughout their years learning their trade \u2013it can range between four and five years \u2014 there are at least 5,000 on-site working hours as well as more than 100 hours of annual in-class study.<\/p>\n

Not everyone makes it.<\/p>\n

Jacksonville City Council member Mike Gay says he would like for apprenticeship programs to provide the option for virtual classes. Doing so would provide flexibility for workers to take coursework at night and on weekends.<\/p>\n

Gay completed an apprenticeship with the Northeast Florida Builders Association in the 1980s. He has owned M Gay Constructors since 1991.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of my companies, that\u2019s one of the things that\u2019s a hinderance with putting some workers in class is because they can\u2019t attend it like they need,\u201d Gay says. \u201cHaving that virtual would open up that door. Some of the other programs that we\u2019re involved in, they have their classes on Saturdays so (workers) can attend.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think we\u2019ll get there. It\u2019s just everybody realizing what we need to do and see how we can alter, change and adapt to where we can get more workers in.\u201d<\/p>\n

When the City Council approved EverBank Stadium renovations in 2024, Gay was the only person to vote against the $1.4 billion project<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Gay did support an initiative where the stadium would serve as an apprenticeship sponsor. The EverBank Stadium legislation reserved 10% of the project\u2019s positions in electrical, mechanical and plumbing work for apprentices.<\/p>\n

Barton Malow is the construction firm that is renovating EverBank Stadium alongside AECOM. Larry Arndt, Barton Malow\u2019s Florida office leader, says labor is the firm\u2019s most pressing issue in the Florida marketplace.<\/p>\n

Arndt adds that a nationwide template will be less successful than local skilled trades solutions.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen someone comes out of a trade school or apprenticeship program ready to contribute from day one, it strengthens the entire project team, and that shows up in schedule and quality,\u201d Arndt wrote in a statement. \u201cStrong relationships with local training programs matter because we\u2019re not just filling roles; we\u2019re helping build the workforce that Florida\u2019s construction industry will depend on for many years ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n

The need may expand in the years ahead. This spring, an analysis from commercial real estate firm JLL Research concluded as many as 2.1 million trades positions could go unfilled<\/a> by 2030.<\/p>\n

\"\"Yanese Mitchell plans to become an electrical apprentice. Mitchell was among 56 people who completed City Year Jacksonville in June 2026, part of a national project that serves communities through volunteerism and community service. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today<\/p>\n

Open for work<\/p>\n

One of the culprits is a shrinking workforce.<\/p>\n

Over the past 35 years, Duval County\u2019s live birth rate has declined by 37 percentage points, according to data from the Florida Department of Health. In that same period, Florida\u2019s birth rate, though lower than Duval\u2019s, has also declined 37 percentage points.<\/p>\n

In 1990, 19.1 of every 1,000 Duval County residents and 15.3 of every 1,000 Floridians had children. The local birth rate reached its 21st century zenith in 2006 when 16.3 of every 1,000 people welcomed children.<\/p>\n

Since that peak two decades ago, the local birthrate has steadily declined. The declining number of adults comes as the last of the baby boom generation reaches retirement age.<\/p>\n

Working hard for the money<\/p>\n

The dearth of skilled trades professionals is more than a theoretical policy question. Arndt says Barton Malow answers it by developing a pipeline that connects the company with trade programs, universities and workforce pipelines.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need enough skilled, qualified tradespeople to complete projects within the timelines our clients require. Access to skilled, available people is foundational to Barton Malow\u2019s ability to deliver,\u201d Arndt wrote in a statement. \u201cWithout that pipeline, everything else \u2014 schedule, quality, client relationships \u2014 suffers. This isn\u2019t a challenge unique to Barton Malow; it\u2019s the defining constraint facing construction firms across the country right now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Barras, the apprenticeship association president, has observed more applicants who have earned associate\u2019s and bachelor\u2019s degrees have sought to join a building trade over the last decade.<\/p>\n

Barras, who became a plumber\u2019s apprentice in 2001 after a decade in the Navy, says the average age for a starting apprentice is in their late 20s.<\/p>\n

Keith Bryan started as an electrical apprentice when he was 41. He worked with direct current sources during a previous automotive career. He wanted to learn a new skill.<\/p>\n

\"\"Keith Bryan, right, was named the Jacksonville Electrical Outstanding Apprentice of the Year during the 75th annual Jacksonville General Apprenticeship Association graduation celebration on Friday, May 29, 2026. Bryan was joined by Danny Van Sickle, the training director for the Electrical Training Alliance of Jacksonville.\u00a0| Will Brown, Jacksonville Today<\/p>\n

\u201cThe process of learning something new, being able to share what I\u2019ve learned and being able to help somebody with it, I guess you could say, that\u2019s always been one of my biggest rewards,\u201d Bryan says.<\/p>\n

Bryan was named the Jacksonville Electrical Outstanding Apprentice of the Year last month at the 75th annual Jacksonville General Apprenticeship Association graduation celebration.<\/p>\n

\u201cDirty hands do not mean you are an idiot, by any means\u201d Bryan says. \u201cMike Rowe, he went around the country, proving that these jobs are big money (opportunities). There\u2019s a lot of money to be made in the electrical field. But you\u2019re going to get your hands dirty if you\u2019re in it \u2014 no doubt about it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Bureau of Labor Statistics indicated that the median pay for an electrician was $62,000 a year. Gay, a longtime electrician before he won elected office, says a local skilled electrician can earn between $83,000 and $104,000.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a gateway into the middle class,\u201d Barras says of building trades. \u201cIt\u2019s an entrepreneurial opportunity and a pretty neat evolution to watch. To watch someone come into the trades, whether they are 18 or 28, learn their craft, then start their own business or work their way up \u2026 it\u2019s a career and not a job.\u201d<\/p>\n