There are more than 400 construction worker job listings in the CSRA and a new program at Aiken Technical College (ATC) is gearing up to help fill them. The pre-apprenticeship program offered this fall will prepare students for careers in construction.
The Savannah River Site and more than 15 local trade unions have partnered with Aiken Tech for this initiative. The program is being offered at no cost to South Carolina residents, thanks to state-funded grants. The program tuition for out-of-state residents is $1,000.
Free tuition for South Carolina students is just one of the bonuses, the other is the potential for building career stability. According to Indeed.com, the average salary for a construction laborer in the CSRA is $36,000 a year. Some of the CSRA construction job listings also include insurance benefits and Paid Time Off (PTO).
Augusta University Economics Professor and weekly ABD contributor, Dr. Simon Medcalfe recently updated the Leading Economic Index (LEI) for the CSRA. At the top of the employment list for the past three months are construction jobs generated by a continuing trend for residential building permits including multi-unit construction. Medcalfe believes this represents a positive outlook for the next three to six months.
Aiken Tech’s five-week program will begin October 7 and students will meet Monday through Thursday, from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m.
Coursework topics include employability skills, mathematics, blueprint reading, hand tools, and safety practices. Upon completion of the program, students will receive a certificate of completion, have the chance to earn an OSHA-10 certification, and be invited to interview with the local partner trade unions for further training and employment.
Registration for the pre-apprenticeship construction program is open. To enroll, the student must have at least a high school diploma or GED and be committed to completing the program.
To sign up, contact Patricia Whitfield in the Office of Continuing Education at (803) 508-7362 or whitfiep@atc.edu.
Editor’s Note:
Mitzi Oxford is a veteran broadcaster and features writer who also worked at the same television station in Columbus, Georgia as Augusta’s Brad Means! If you have a South Carolina story idea for Mitzi, please email her at mitzioxfordcreative@gmail.com.
