Without Stimulus Help, Highway Construction Workers Seek Career Retraining

Historically, recessions prove beneficial for highway construction workers. However, with the government stimulus plan emphasizing "shovel-ready" public works projects and green technology, laid-off highway workers may not find relief in the short term. Career retraining can help road builders transition to new jobs amid layoffs at state and county transportation agencies.

According to experts at the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the classification of "highway worker" can apply to professionals from over a dozen specialties. Supervisors, surveyors, architects, and builders can all develop niche careers as employees of transportation agencies. Likewise, an entire ecosystem of third party contractors rely on state and federally funded contracts for their specialty jobs. With construction slowing in the private sector, career advisors recommend that highway workers focus their career retraining on recession-proof maintenance specialties.

Common Job Skills Among Highway Construction Professionals

• Understanding of Bureaucracy
• Advanced Technical Knowledge
• Ability to Work in Extreme Conditions

Career Opportunities for Laid-Off Highway Workers

Highway workers in supervisory positions may be able to leverage employer-sponsored job skills training to qualify for administrative roles in other government departments. For example, surveyors on highway projects can transition to jobs in records management or tax collection offices. In other cases, highway workers can use career retraining courses to develop complementary skills while gaining access to networks of prospective private employers.

New Economy Careers for Highway Construction Professionals

• Public Administration
• HVAC Maintenance
• Conservation

Benefits of Career Retraining for Highway Workers

Today's career retraining programs, offered by accredited colleges, universities, and training centers, help laid off highway workers respond to a recession by developing essential job skills. Because government stimulus funding benefits companies with strong investments in "green initiatives," workers can get the best return on their investments by getting hands-on training with the latest, high-efficiency technologies.

Not only can job skills training help highway workers ride out the current recession, it can help prepare workers for long term changes in the way Americans transport themselves throughout the country. Some cities and states prefer to invest tax dollars and federal funding into light rail projects, while others focus on telecommuting technology. Either way, broadening your job prospects can prevent you from being sidelined by broader trends.

Sources:
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Laborers
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Mass Layoffs Summary
Bureau of Labor Statistics, State and Local Government
Kingsport Times News, "Stimulus Money to Fund Only Ready-to-Go Projects," by Kevin Castle
USA Today, State, local officials clash over stimulus funds, by Larry Copeland