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The annual National Craft Championships (NCC) brings together the best craft trainees from across the country to show off their skills and compete in one of thirteen crafts. At the end of the week, 13 of the competitors will be walking away with a gold medal around their necks and a cash prize in their pocket—showing that your training program produces truly the best and most-skilled craft professionals. 

Finding the right way to thank your employees can be difficult, but through ABC’s Workforce Development Awards, we’re giving you the opportunity to showcase their talent, hard work and dedication to the construction industry. Your construction craft professionals have the chance to win our national award, Craft Professional of the Year along with additional prizes. All you have to do, is nominate them.

Every year, ABC member companies send their teams out to universities and local colleges to find the best recruits to join their company. Now, ABC members can meet qualified candidates from ABC student chapters who are looking for full-time positions and internships in one place: at ABC’s Career Fair Nov. 11, in Miami, Fla.

In the last five years, 87% of Millennial employees took on management roles. By 2025, 75% of employees will be from the Millennial generation. These numbers make it clear that retaining top talent is vital to the future of your business. But what does it take to keep Millennials around?

With a looming workforce shortage of 1.6 million skilled craft workers, contractors must ensure they are doing everything they can to keep the ones they already have. The 39 gold, silver and bronze 2014 National Craft Championship winners prove that by sending a competitor to the annual competition, you can create excitement among your trainees and encourage them to hone their skills, work safely and be proud to be a part of your training program.

More than 6,100 career and technical education (CTE) students competed in 99 different craft, technical and leadership fields during the June 2014 SkillsUSA Championships in Kansas City, Mo. SkillsUSA is the national-level competition for high school and college/postsecondary students enrolled in CTE programs.

In order to successfully define and implement workforce development initiatives to best serve ABC members, contractors are invited to take part in a new survey related to training. Three randomly selected participants will be awarded $500 American Express gift cards once the survey is closed.

The Intent to Compete forms for the 2015 National Craft Championships are now available online for ABC members and chapters who think their apprentices and craft trainees have what it takes to win the national title of ABC’s  craft champions. The competition will take place March 3-6 in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. and Intent to Compete forms are due by Dec. 1, 2014.The 2015 competition will feature the following crafts:

The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) was signed into law July 22 and has the potential to create great opportunities for ABC members who have been looking for skilled workers to fill the labor shortage. Here’s how it directly affects ABC members:

In the July 16 ruling of Merit Construction Alliance v. City of Quincy, the First Circuit Court of Appeals found that the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) preempts a controversial city ordinance that forced contractors to “engage in a bona fide apprentice training program" registered with the Massachusetts Department of Labor Standards as a condition of bidding for city work.