Setting standards to ensure the construction industry creates good jobs and opportunities for our diverse local communities.
Construction is the second-fastest growing industry in Silicon Valley (just behind the tech sector), with more than 13,000 projected job openings over the next decade.
The construction trades can be a pathway to a skilled career and a brighter future. Registered Apprentices in the building trades get paid to learn on the job, instead of spending thousands on a college degree. High-road construction companies compete on quality by paying family-supporting wages and investing in training and safety.
However, some developers and low-road contractors instead cut costs and pad their profits by paying such low wages that people cannot afford to live in the communities they’re building.
Low-road contractors particularly exploit people of color. They pay Latino and black people 38% less than white workers — costing Latino workers and their families $387 million each year. Exploitive contractors also dodge responsibility for training the next generation of construction workers, leaving California without enough apprenticeship slots to meet future demand for a skilled workforce.
Trades Orientation Program
We are committed to expanding pathways into the construction trades for under-represented communities through the Trades Orientation Program (TOP), a one-year apprenticeship readiness program to help people get started in a high-road construction career. Learn more about TOP here.
