How to keep the building
boom from going bustAn educated, drug-free workforce
is critical, union advocate says
Quality, not quantity, is the issue when addressing questions about whether Hawaii will be able to meet the employment needs of a growing construction industry.
"We can take on work. We have a workforce. The challenge is do we have a qualified workforce?" asked Bruce Coppa, executive director of Pacific Resource Partnership, an advocacy group for union contractors.
Coppa, who also is on the state Land Use Commission, estimates the construction workforce will need anywhere between 8,000 to 12,000 new employees over the next 10 years.
But developing a trained workforce is proving to be problematic, he said.
Coppa notes that recent testing for potential jobs in his industry revealed two problems: Failure of a basic educational test required for the apprenticeship program and failure of drug tests.
Around 40 percent of applicants failed an 8th-grade level math test for the program, Coppa said. A week later, 50 percent of those retaking the test failed.
"The challenges are a drug-free and educated workforce," he said.
Coppa said the dismal results even prompted a discussion of lowering the educational standards. But in the previous construction boom in the 1980s, an underprepared workforce resulted in higher worker's compensation claims and production quality issues, he said. So training the workforce up to meet basic educational requirements is the right choice, Coppa said.
The state Department of Labor and Industrial Relations is already funding some workforce preparedness and retraining programs for the industry, he said. And the Hawaii Carpenters Union is building a $500,000 training facility at Kalaeloa.
All that investment will pay off if the industry is sustainable beyond the initial boom.
Between the military, government and private sectors, the number of upcoming projects on Oahu will have a huge impact, said Coppa, who spoke at a forum yesterday on the impact and opportunities related to the upcoming construction work. He was joined by Daniel Dinell, executive director of the Hawaii Community Development Program and Brad Davis, the Public Private Venture Program Manager for PAC-DIV at Pearl Harbor.
Davis manages the development and execution of the many privatization projects for the Navy and Marine Corps. Privatization is not a new concept for the military, Davis said. What is new is the amount of private sector funds leveraged by the military to develop the project. Private sector capital accelerates construction and frees up money the military can then use for equipment, he said.
The self-sustaining element of these privatization projects will translate into a variety of opportunities for Hawaii businesses beyond the initial construction phase, he said.
For the HCDA's Dinell, the immediate challenge is the transformation of Kakaako. With construction of the new University of Hawaii Medical School well under way and an assortment of residential high rise, infrastructure and commercial projects either on-going or planned, Dinell said he believes better planning for Oahu's overall future is needed to sustain job growth and the economy.
"The boom and bust cycles are not helpful. We need sustained levels of development. We need to plan for the future and understand the impact of decisions we make. We'd like to take more of a long view. If you plan for it you can have a higher quality of life," he said.
Good help needed
The Hawaii Carpenters Union recruits apprentices twice a year. The next program begins in April.Apprenticeship admission requirements
>> High school diploma or equivalent
>> Pass an 8th-grade level math test and an oral interview
>> Pass drug screening test
>> Must be able to lift 75 pounds for carpentry, 100 pounds for drywallApprenticeship program
>> Four years of training on the job, plus a half day Saturday at community college for a total of 8,000 hours (can take longer if economy is slow)
>>The union will refer apprentice for employment while in trainingSalary
>> Apprentices start out at 40 percent of journeyman's salary
>> Journeyman's salary: $31.55 per hour; $48.55 including benefitsSource: Hawaii Carpenters Union Local 745
