While artificial intelligence (AI) might be able to write a bad version of this article at a much lower price than what a human writer charges, the technology has its limitations. "AI, without question, is changing work," Lowe's CEO Marvin Ellison told The Wall Street Journal. "But somebody will still be required to crawl under your sink and fix a leak, get your HVAC working, or do construction on a data center." Those people, the skilled laborers who build and fix stuff, are in short supply.
"Low labor force participation and skills gaps are especially acute in manufacturing, construction, and other skilled trades, where for every five workers who retire, only two replacements enter the workforce. By 2030, an estimated 2.1 million skilled trades jobs could go unfilled, with potential economic losses reaching $1 trillion annually," according to the U.S. That's a problem Ellison wants Lowe's to be part of fixing.
Related: Costco kills member perk that saved customers money The Lowe's Foundation has launched the Building Futures Skilled Trades Coalition, the largest cross-sector skilled trades coalition in U.S. history, to help train and develop one million people for skilled trades careers by 2035. This national alliance is backed by over 75 American educators, businesses, workforce organizations, industry vendors, and stakeholders across the skilled trades ecosystem, including corporate leaders such as Nvidia, AT&T, Bank of America, Carrier, General Motors, DeWalt, and Duke Energy. "The next industrial revolution won't be built by algorithms alone.
It will be built by the millions of skilled trade professionals who power, connect, and move this country forward," Ellison said in a press release. Change the perception of careers in the skilled trades by challenging outdated narratives that position college as the default path to success. Invest, connect, and scale proven training and credentialing solutions by bringing together educators, businesses, workforce organizations, corporate leaders, industry vendors, and other stakeholders to address shared workforce challenges and expand what works.
Collectively measure progress from training to employment by establishing shared measures that help the coalition understand what's working, identify gaps, and track outcomes across the workforce ecosystem. "Across construction, automotive manufacturing, telecommunications, energy industry, HVAC, technology and financial services, the coalition will use these insights to strengthen connections between training providers and employers, improve pathways to in-demand jobs and help more people translate their training and credentials into meaningful, long-term careers," the coalition shared. Deloitte's 2026 Engineering and Construction Industry Outlook showed a snapshot of just part of the skilled labor shortage.
"The E&C industry continues to face significant labor shortages, a challenge expected to intensify by 2026 — with a projected need for 499,000 new workers, up from 439,000 in 2025. Without strategic initiatives to broaden and upskill the talent pipeline, the industry risks exacerbating project delays, cost overruns, and margin pressures," Deloitte shared. That's not an emerging problem.
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