Education, workforce, industry leaders discuss ways to fill skilled trades
Regional leaders in Scranton, Pennsylvania, gathered to discuss the critical shortage of skilled trades workers impacting data center development across the state. Speakers from Corscale Data Centers and Amazon Web Services highlighted the immense demand for these workers for current and future data center projects, including those in Luzerne and Schuylkill counties. Educational institutions are responding by expanding skilled trades programs to address the workforce gap.
Regional leaders, including representatives from Corscale Data Centers and Amazon Web Services, gathered in Scranton, Pennsylvania, to discuss the growing shortage of skilled trades workers. The event, hosted at Luzerne County Community College's Marketplace at Steamtown location, focused on developing strategies to attract and train youth for careers in digital infrastructure and related fields.
Charul Seoni, Senior Vice President of Data Center Operations at Corscale Data Centers, emphasized the importance of exposing teenagers to data center facilities to correct misconceptions and highlight career opportunities. Nick Lee-Romagnolo from Amazon Web Services noted that Amazon's ongoing data center projects in Hazle and Salem townships in Luzerne County and Kline Township in Schuylkill County will significantly increase the demand for skilled workers, anticipating a need for approximately 300,000 such workers across Pennsylvania by 2030.
Educational institutions are actively responding to this demand. Dr. Jill Murray, President of Lackawanna College, highlighted the college's success in feeding graduates into the natural gas industry and its recent launch of skilled trade centers, with plans for further expansion. John Yudichak, President of Luzerne County Community College, mentioned the college's renewed focus on skilled trades through its Career & Technology Academy and the L3C Building & Construction Trade Apprenticeship Readiness Academy, in partnership with TradesFutures, to prepare students and adults for these critical roles. The consensus among leaders was that addressing this workforce shortage is crucial for Pennsylvania's economic growth and its potential as a hub for data center and energy development.