Amping up the effort to attract new workers.

CIRI to promote heavy/highway opportunities via social media.

Earlier this year, the CIRI Careers Video was created to promote the work opportunities and career potential presented by the heavy and highway construction industry. Produced with content/production support from the New England Laborers and Building Futures Rhode Island, the 7-minute video has been presented to high school students via guidance counselors across the state. As a result of this outreach and internal efforts by CIRI, the video has been viewed nearly 800 times on YouTube.

A second phase for CIRI’s industry awareness effort is planned for the coming months, using social media channels that are frequented by young career seekers. These are 20-somethings who are realizing they need to find a profession with higher pay, substantial benefits and genuine long-term potential. We believe this audience represents the most promising sector in terms of recruitment — at a time when the competition for potential candidates is especially intense.

“The fact our industry offers free training and paid apprenticeships through the New England Laborers and other trade unions is a major advantage,” says Tim Scanlon, CIRI executive director. “It’s a tremendous opportunity for young people to earn as they learn, and to get started on a solid career path. Plus, they can do this without taking on any tuition debt from a college or trade school.”