Infrastructure workers fix pipes, install powerlines, build roads, and with increased spending on infrastructure in recent years, there’s a need for workers with the skills to do those jobs. A new report looks into infrastructure occupations in the Third District states of Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.
Findings include:
- Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania tend to have an older population compared with the rest of the nation. While this trend could lead to infrastructure workforce shortages in the future, it could also create opportunities.
- More than 80 percent of infrastructure jobs in these three states are considered “opportunity occupations” — jobs that pay above an area’s median wage and don’t require a four-year college degree.
Many infrastructure jobs, regardless of their pay level, share similar skills, suggesting that these sectors could provide opportunities for workers without a four-year degree and others to move up the economic ladder.