The Austin Infrastructure Academy is seeing early returns on its efforts to bolster Austin’s construction and mobility workforce, and talent should start to exit the new pipeline soon.
The academy, which launched in March, has seen notable interest from the private sector and job seekers over its efforts to connect locals to training opportunities in the construction industry. It was spawned by projections that Austin won’t have enough workers as it embarks on at least $25 billion in projects, including light rail expansions, I-35 upgrades, a new convention center and a larger airport — not to mention the usual private sector construction.
“We’ve seen slow momentum, but I think it’s going to increase over the next couple of months,” said Yael Lawson, the chief operations officer for Workforce Solutions Capital Area, which oversees the academy. “We’re training people now, so we’re going to start to see them graduating and hired.”
