Search for members by name, location, market segment, sales volume or type of construction using FindContractors.com. Update your profile to make sure your company is found—and win more work. #ABCMeritShopProud

Did you know? Educating project supervisors and other key personnel on project safety reduces TRIR and DART rates by 55%. Learn more: abc.org/hspr #ABCMeritShopProud #ConstructionSafety #NationalSafetyMonth

The ABC Retirement & Savings Plan is supported by an independent plan fiduciary and service providers who share a common goal of helping you be successful while reducing work and liability. Take a moment to learn about them: abcretirementplan.com/your-a… #ABCMeritShopProud

"Oil prices, pushed higher by the Iran conflict, made a significant contribution to the increase, yet the greater concern is the price growth in tariff-affected inputs like iron, steel and copper." -ABC Chief Economist @SageAnirban. go.abc.org/3QAh2Ik #ABCMeritShopProud

"The Trump administration and U.S. Senate must reject this egregious legislation. ABC calls on them to instead stand with workers, entrepreneurs and small businesses." go.abc.org/4vBCpb3 #ABCMeritShopProud

wsj.com/opinion/high-tech-se… As most of you here know, my foundation has sent thousands of men and women to trade schools all over America. Through our work ethic scholarship program, mikeroweWORKS has helped train the next generation of skilled workers, and in the coming months and years, we’ll train thousands more. But the truth is, there aren’t enough trade schools in the country to meet the current need, and a lot of people who might otherwise consider a career in the skilled trades, have been discouraged by the cost of doing so. Happily, a lot of influential CEO's have done the math and concluded that closing the skills gap is nothing less than a matter of national security. Every week, some leader in some consequential industry calls to tell me about a new initiative to reinvigorate the trades, and many have reached out to see if mikeroweWORKS might join their efforts to help train the next generation of skilled workers. Recently, I’ve been really encouraged by companies like @WellsFargo, @BlackRock, @Ford @HomeDepot, @Lowes, and so many others – all looking for better ways to make a more persuasive case for hundreds of thousands of AI-proof, six-figure jobs that don’t require a four-year degree. The most recent initiative to hit my radar comes from Meta. It looks promising, and I’m happy to support it. The attached op-ed appeared in yesterday’s The @WSJ and outlines the details of The American Workforce Academy - a five-week, super-intensive training program that doesn’t cost the workers a dime. In fact, the workers are actually paid as they learn. And then, they’re guaranteed a job on the other side. I co-authored the piece with Dina Powell-McCormick the President of @Meta, and today, Dina and I'll be making the rounds on the usual networks, talking about the pressing need to attract more workers into the skilled trades as soon as possible. The AI economy, like it or not, is upon us, and the infrastructure that’s being proposed to support it will cost upwards of $10 trillion and require hundreds of thousands of skilled workers. Workers that, for the moment anyway, do not exist. I know that data centers are controversial, and I know people are nervous about AI. I’m not downplaying any of that. In fact, I think it’s really important for those in power to make a more persuasive case for a future that has so many unsettled. All I can tell you for sure is that the future is coming at us very quickly. The AI Race is real, the stakes a very high, and the United States cannot afford to lose. On the other hand, we can’t possibly hope to win, without skilled labor. This program, and others like it, are an important step in the right direction. COMMENTARY (U.S.) High-Tech Seeks Skilled Tradesmen Americans have been told a fable about our economic future. Construction and manufacturing were giving way to a digital economy based on knowledge alone. Skilled labor was outdated. Shop class was defunded. Four-year degrees were idolized. Blue-collar job losses and brittle supply chains were the price of progress. This myth assumed that high-tech and the trades were alternatives, even rivals. In fact, they are interdependent. For 250 years, America has claimed the lion’s share of the world’s greatest inventions. But it was generations of American workers who strung the telegraph wire, laid the railroad tracks, and built the interstate highways and buried the fiber. They shared in the prosperity that resulted. The artificial-intelligence revolution shows that America’s technological progress and skilled workforce are still inseparable. To maintain our technological edge, we need to build infrastructure at scale and with great speed. This requires better pathways into high-paying trades for Americans hungry for opportunity. The skilled trades and Silicon Valley need each other—and America’s future needs them both. That’s why Meta and our partners, including the @ABCNational and the The National Urban League are announcing the launch of America’s Workforce Academy, the largest private-sector commitment to the skilled trades in American history, beginning with a $115 million commitment in the first year and committing hundreds of millions over time. AWA will reject the failed approach that asks workers to pay for their own training and hope to be rewarded with a job. The men and women who enroll will be paid for their time. Parents won’t be blocked from learning tomorrow’s skills because they need to put food on the table today. Courses will take weeks and leave graduates with industry-standard certifications in high-demand fields such as electrical work, mechanical systems and plumbing. Every graduate will be guaranteed a job on a @Meta partner’s construction site. AWA, we believe, is the start of a revolution our economy needs. Practically every major industry is desperate to hire more skilled workers. The mikeroweWORKSFoundation has spent years sounding this alarm. At Metaalone, we anticipate needing thousands more workers as we build infrastructure to empower students, families and small-business owners. There is no lack of Americans eager to learn and work. Earlier this year, Meta launched LevelUp, a smaller training program focused on fiber installation. In the first seven days, we received more than 35,000 applications for 1,000 openings. Demand isn’t the problem. What has been missing is a practical bridge linking America’s workers to America’s needs. AWA will be that pathway. Skilled workers electrified rural America one pole at a time. They manned the factories that built the arsenal that won World War II. Now a new generation will pour the foundations and lay the fiber that secures American economic strength for a new age. The AI revolution is bringing change and uncertainty, but also historic opportunities. Americans don’t flinch from challenges. When opportunity shows up as a hard hat or a pair of overalls, we put them on and get to work. That’s always been our story. AWA will help us write the next chapter—one where the future is for everyone. @dinapowellMcC is president of Meta. Mr. Rowe is CEO of the mikeroweWORKS Foundation and host of the Discovery Channel’s “Dirty Jobs.”

"ABC believes in creating opportunities for all on a level playing field and is ready to help individuals achieve their career dreams. ABC is honored to partner with @Meta to expand the talent pipeline." More: go.abc.org/4upYEQn #ABCMeritShopProud

Tracking and reviewing activities carried out to prevent and control injury leads to a 57% reduction in TRIR and 58% in DART rates. Learn more: abc.org/hspr #ABCMeritShopProud #ConstructionSafety #NationalSafetyMonth

"The industry’s recent job growth, driven by insatiable demand for data centers and ongoing growth in publicly funded construction activity, appears set to continue over the coming months." go.abc.org/4uVvhGK #ABCMeritShopProud #JobsFriday

You can be a vital part of ABC’s advocacy efforts and make an impact on legislation affecting the construction industry. It’s a simple, convenient and powerful way to communicate with lawmakers. Download the ABC Action app: abc.org/action #ABCMeritShopProud

Participating in ABC’s STEP® Health and Safety Management Program can make your company nearly seven times safer than the industry average. Begin your journey: abc.org/step #ABCMeritShopProud #ConstructionSafety #NationalSafetyMonth

"This release suggests that contractors are increasingly struggling to fill open positions. Fewer construction workers were laid off in April than in any month since the first half of 2022," says @SageAnirban. go.abc.org/4vhtefM #ABCMeritShopProud

Private sector construction momentum has been difficult to find outside of the still-ascendant data center segment, which is up 28.1% over the past year. go.abc.org/4dUsupJ #ABCMeritShopProud

ABC's Kristen Swearingen in @WSJ: The Faster Labor Contracts Act empowers unions at workers’ expense. go.abc.org/4uD9bZi #ABCMeritShopProud

“We are really focusing on the mental health of workers in the construction industry.” ABC Georgia president Bill Anderson shared how they continue to work on expanding access to mental health resources. #MentalHealthAwarenessMonth #ABCMeritShopProud vimeo.com/1194459308/7822a2a…

ABC is seeking member contractor-written case studies for the upcoming ABC Health and Safety Tech Report. Share how your team is using health and safety technology in the field and office. Deadline: May 31, 2026. Submit at abc.org/casestudy. #ABCMeritShopProud

Safer cultures start with leadership. ABC helps employers create workplaces where safety, well-being and resilience are part of everyday operations, not just the jobsite checklist. abc.org/totalhumanhealth #MentalHealthAwarenessMonth #ABCMeritShopProud #ABCTotalHumanHealth

ABC’s total wellness partners give members added support, from crisis care and workplace threat resources to virtual hearing benefits and financial wellness for employees. abc.org/thh #MentalHealthAwarenessMonth #ABCMeritShopProud #ABCTotalHumanHealth

Every construction and engineering project, regardless of scale, hinges on a single critical element: the schedule. The most effective approach strategically unites two powerful methodologies, explained in the latest TAILS post. Learn more from @Oracle: go.abc.org/4fw5aRZ

Register for this upcoming webinar to learn how AQC can help position your company for growth—no matter your size—and discover the support ABC National provides to help guide you through the application process. go.abc.org/4v81Kcl #ABCMeritShopProud