Pub. 2 2019-2020 Issue 1

17 children: grow up, get a white-collar degree, and land a great job that will provide the ben- efits and security you need. That advice has caused an imbalance in the workforce; despite the massive cost increase of gaining a college education, which has more than doubled since the 1980s, 40% of millennial workers (aged 25-29) had earned a bachelor’s degree as of 2016, when the Pew Research Center did a survey. Compare that with two other generations: • In 2000, 32% of gen Xers had earned a bach- elor’s degree • In 1985, 25% of boomers had earned a bach- elor’s degree What’s the result? Large, toxic debt; increased com- petition fromall the other people earningdegrees; and a mindsight that you can’t make a good life by doing anything other than white-col- lar work. The solution has several components. Technology Even though technology is potentially disruptive to the industry, that isn’t nec- essarily a bad thing. Applied technology canmake it possible for companies to do morewith less, and it can attract younger workerswho value technology andwho have the technical skills they need to maximize their value. Autonomous vehi- cles, for example, may make a big dif- ference when it comes to the employee shortage in the trucking industry;mining companies have had great success with implementing autonomous transport, and there’s no reason to think the asphalt industry can’t do the same. Technology can be transformative. It can make work easier, more pleasant and more efficient. It can also free up money for improvedwages. These are all good things. Sometimes a little disrup- tion is the best thing that could happen to an industry. Culture The construction industry, including the asphalt industry, has an unfortunate rep- utation. People think of it in terms of an old-school, inflexible mentality. That’s bad enough. In addition, though, the wage rates are depressed. You can’t attract potential employees in a competitive job market unless you offer them something worth having. Companies need to think in terms of offering its younger workforce a well- paid career path that will allow them to pay off their school loans, give them opportunities to grow professionally, and (not coincidentally) put their tech- nical skills to work. People are going to continue to go to school and earn degrees. Please don’t waste time and energy trying to per- suade them to do otherwise. Instead, create a work situation where you have jobs for everyone, with a degree or without, and then make sure that whatever it is your employees do, they have satisfying and rewarding job assignments. Pay them well. Give them options so they can grow with the company. Marketing As jobs within the asphalt industry become more attractive than people currently think they are, it becomes much easier to sell the industry as a potential career for young people. Don’t wait until students are in high school. Start recruitment efforts on the grade- school level. What’s the best way to do that? One is by doing charitable work within the community. Build a relationship with the schools, includ- ing any local university, by support- ing its programs. Potential ideas include the following: • Start a scholarship • Set up a field trip for students • Provide lesson material for teachers, along with access to industry experts, to increase interest from students • Find asmany needs within the commu- nity as you can, even for problems that have nothing to do with asphalt, and have employees donate a day of labor, so the problem gets solved The goal is to build a brand that people see as a positive force. Once you have made positive changes within the culture, you need to let people know that something new and worthwhile is going on, something that could provide them with a brighter and more productive future. The labor shortage is going to be around for a while, but you can posi- tion yourself and your company so that potential employees are aware of you. You can attract them by provid- ing them with the kind of work envi- ronment anyone would want. That’s a strategy that can help solve the labor shortage for your specific company. It will also improve your own work experience. 3