The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) recently announced two construction hiring and workforce development pilot programs that will be managed by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA).
Both programs give contracting agencies expanded flexibility to use hiring preferences that enhance opportunities for those in economically or socially disadvantaged communities.
They also improve participation in existing training and apprenticeship programs.
FHWA’s four-year Enhancing Workforce Development Opportunities Contracting Initiative will enable state transportation agencies and contractors to better recruit qualified construction workers.
FTA’s four-year Equitable Economic Recovery and Workforce Development Through Construction Hiring Pilot Program will allow transit agencies to use geographic, economic, and other hiring preferences on FTA-funded construction projects.
The programs are open to FHWA and FTA federal funds recipients and sub-recipients.
“As we invest in world-class infrastructure for Americans, we want to make sure that our investments create jobs for people in the communities where the projects are located,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said at an event at the Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge in Washington, D.C. “We’re proud to launch the department’s local hiring initiative, with an additional focus on workforce development so that good jobs can become meaningful careers.”