Report: Florida tops nation in skilled worker demand

The Alliance for America's Skilled Trades recently released a national report called "The State of America's Skilled Trades” that shows the pressure is on in Florida to find skilled trades workers.

After reviewing 124 skilled trades occupations across all 50 states to identify where workers are needed and whether training is keeping pace, the report’s authors found that Florida has the highest demand for skilled tradespeople but ranks second-to-last among states for supply.

Florida is one of nine states where demand is outpacing supply for skilled workers, according to the report. Others are Arizona, Colorado, Delaware, Georgia, New Jersey, North Carolina, South Carolina and Texas. Adding to the pressure in Florida is that 26% of the state’s 1.04 million trade workers are 55 years or older, the report says.

The only state with a lower supply of skilled workers is Maine, according to the report.

Here are the occupations the report says face the strongest shortage pressure in Florida:

• Industrial and refractory machinery mechanics
• Tool and die makers
• Underground mining machine operators
• Elevator and escalator installers and repairers
• Precision instrument and equipment repairers
• Transportation inspectors
• Structural iron and steel workers
• Electricians
• Glaziers
• Plasterers and stucco masons
• Stationary engineers and boiler operators
• Construction and building inspectors

The report is one of the first projects for the Alliance for America’s Skilled Trades since its founding in July by BlackRock, Carhartt, Ford Motor Co. and Google. Recently, the coalition of companies added 14 new members, including Meta, Verizon, Dewalt, ManpowerGroup and Waymo. The group is committed to closing the nation’s skilled trades gap by expanding access to training, apprenticeships and career pathways.

“No single company can close the skilled trades gap alone,” Ford CEO and President Jim Farley says in a statement. “Employers, educators and policymakers must work together to help people get the training, support and jobs they need to succeed.”