Spotlight on Opportunity

How four days at the largest gathering of America’s skilled workforce, SkillsUSA, could lead to a much-needed elevator industry transformation

by Amy Blankenbiller and Dave Morgan

Last year, the National Elevator Industry, Inc. (NEII) expanded its efforts related to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) by attending events that could be a key to unlocking one of the elevator industry’s biggest challenges: diversifying its field employee workforce. One of those events was SkillsUSA’s National Leadership and Skills Conference, a significant annual event that offered overwhelming promise to raise the awareness of the opportunities in the elevator industry with motivated students interested in pursuing careers in a building trade.  

SkillsUSA’s National Leadership and Skills Conference is the largest gathering of America’s future skilled workforce, bringing together thousands of students — along with their instructors, business partners and administrators — to celebrate the accomplishments of those preparing for careers in trade, technical and skilled service occupations. Founded in 1965, SkillsUSA was originally known as the Vocational Industrial Clubs of America (VICA) and then renamed SkillsUSA-VICA in 1999 before being shortened to simply SkillsUSA in 2002. Membership has flourished over its nearly 60-year history with SkillsUSA now having more than 394,000 members. SkillsUSA has 53 state/territory chapters and is a part of the curriculum in approximately 17,000 classrooms across the U.S. 

NEIEP brought in a mini elevator tower, virtual simulator and hydraulic valve simulator that allowed conference attendees to experience the various aspects of the elevator and escalator industries.

SkillsUSA is one of the most important organizations that not only supports the development of a skilled workforce, but drives increased DEI within the skilled trades. Approximately 44% of students in SkillsUSA are from historically underrepresented racial and ethnic groups, and 38% of the student members are female. To put this in perspective, while we do not have the exact numbers, we know the elevator industry has a workforce that is less than 2% female. With more than 64,000 SkillsUSA members involved in the architecture and construction career cluster, it is undeniable that SkillsUSA has been an untapped talent resource for the elevator industry. But that has changed. 

An Eventful Week for the Elevator Industry

NEII and the National Elevator Industry Educational Program (NEIEP) took one small step for elevators, one giant leap for the elevator industry when they partnered on an exhibit at SkillsUSA TECHSPO, part of the SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference held June 19-23 at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta. The goal was to raise awareness about the elevator industry and tap into the potential of the more than 12,000 individuals who were in attendance.

NEII and NEIEP share a commitment to safety, inclusivity, community and support, and our partnership was invaluable to the success of this event. The NEIEP staff handled questions about the process and training necessary to become a mechanic in the elevator industry and provided students with tangible next steps via NEIEP. NEIEP also brought in a mini elevator tower, virtual simulator and hydraulic valve simulator that allowed conference attendees to experience the various aspects of the elevator and escalator industries. NEII’s member companies sent experienced mechanics who shared their stories about how they got into the elevator industry and what it is like working in the field. NEII staff were on hand to discuss the overall importance of this industry and how skills being learned for other trades can apply to the elevator industry. In addition, we all worked together to connect with the teachers and advisors to ensure our trade would be incorporated into their programs and to secure opportunities to connect with their students. 

Going Up

In the article “Rising Together” (ELEVATOR WORLD, February 2023), NEII outlined the benefits of a diverse workforce, which includes more innovation and less employee turnover, and even provides tips on incorporating DEI practices to improve retaining employees and attracting apprentices. 

Partnerships are key, and after interacting with hundreds of students at this year’s National Leadership and Skills Conference and showing them how their skillsets and interests transfer and fit in the elevator industry, there is confidence that a broader talent pipeline for the elevator industry will be established sooner rather than later. SkillsUSA students represent the future for the skilled trades, and NEII, NEIEP and elevator companies will be pursuing additional opportunities beyond the annual SkillsUSA’s National Leadership and Skills Conference event, whether it’s sending representatives from the elevator industry into SkillsUSA classrooms (in-person or virtually), hosting a career day, leading a skills development event or providing local chapters with additional information about the elevator industry and how to prepare to become an apprentice.

For now, NEII and NEIEP see the elevator industry going up as it taps into this valuable new resource for an industry in need of new talent pipelines. 

Dave Morgan is executive director of NEIEP.