1、1SEIZING THE U.S.INFRASTRUCTURE OPPORTUNITYSEIZING THE U.S.INFRASTRUCTURE OPPORTUNITY:INVESTING IN CURRENT AND FUTURE WORKERSJOSEPH W.KANEDECEMBER 20222SEIZING THE U.S.INFRASTRUCTURE OPPORTUNITYCONTENTExecutive Summary 3Introduction 5Background 7Recruitment and hiring challenges.7Training challenges

2、.9Retention challenges.11Addressing future and current infrastructure workforce needs.12Defining and measuring infrastructure jobs 13Findings 16Employment.16Wages.19Education and Training.23Growth and Hiring Needs.25Demographics.27Policy implications and recommendations 32Conclusion 37Acknowledgemen

3、ts 38End notes 393SEIZING THE U.S.INFRASTRUCTURE OPPORTUNITYExecutive SummaryInvesting in infrastructure can stimulate economic growth and unleash job creation across the nation.Whether its building roads,repairing pipes,or upgrading power plants,investments in the countrys transportation,water,ener

4、gy,and broadband systems not only support more economic output,but also drive the need for more workers.Several recent pieces of federal legislationincluding the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act(IIJA),Inflation Reduction Act(IRA),and CHIPS and Science Actare pumping hundreds of billions of dol

5、lars toward new projects and new jobs.This is a level of investment not seen since the New Deal.But national,state,and local leaders risk squandering this window of opportunity if they focus only on future job creation without addressing the cracking foundation of the countrys current workforce.Infr

6、astructure investment already supports millions of workers nationally.Moving goods,producing energy,managing water,and carrying out many other essential activities depend on workers across every corner of the country and are foundational to economic growth and opportunity.Past Brookings research has