The average age of today's tradesperson is 56 years old, with 5 to 15 years until retirement. By 2020, the United States will need roughly 10,000,000 new skilled workers in the industry. Right now, 600,000 skilled jobs are going unfilled. 83% of companies report a moderate to serious shortage of skilled workers and 69% expect the shortage to grow worse within the next 3-5 years. Among ALL U.S. employers, 52% are having trouble filling jobs with technicians, skilled trades, production operators, and laborers being the most difficult to fill.

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Where are all the workers? America's viewpoint is contributing to the skills gap. Young generations lack skills and acceptance of trade education, which has resulted in a decline of qualified skilled workers nationwide. Only 1 in every 3 parents would encourage their child to work in a trade. Americans believe tradespeople are important, so long as they're not the ones working those jobs. 

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That's where SkillsUSA comes in. We're flipping the script, changing the perception, and making so trades positions are just as coveted as any other, that future generations can look up to tradespeople the same way they do athletes, celebrities, and others. Our members deliver that message for us; performing incredible feats at competition, demonstrating the standard of professionalism, and being the future of America's workforce.