“Back to school” doesn’t necessarily mean a return to the classroom, according to Cat Footwear, the official footwear licensee of Caterpillar Inc.
As other brands and retailers highlight the fall start to the school year, Cat Footwear is celebrating young people who are choosing to train in the construction field.
“Many young adults don’t go straight from high school to college, as more students are choosing
to pursue an education in skilled trades,” said Lauren Heindl, senior marketing manager at Cat Footwear. “Consequently, they’re often left out of the ‘Back to School’ conversation for having taken a different post-secondary route.”
This fall, in partnership with Caterpillar Inc.’s ThinkBig program, Cat Footwear has selected three students from three community colleges to talk about their stories and decisions to enter the trades. “From their biggest inspirations to the skills they’re most proud of, we’re so excited to celebrate the journey these students have gone on thus far, and the goals they have as they pursue their passion,” said Heindl.
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To amplify the campaign, Cat Footwear will share construction tips, back-to-construction school checklists and other inspirational content. It also will donate 500 pairs of shoes to students in the ThinkBig program, host a $300 giveaway to be used on Catfootwear.com and offer a student and teacher promotion.
ThinkBig is a two-year instructional program that pays students while they train to become a Caterpillar technician. Participants alternate between labs and classroom work and intern at a sponsoring Cat dealership. At the end of the program, students graduate with an accredited degree, as well as over 2,000 hours of work experience.
According to the National Student Clearinghouse, enrollment in construction trade courses increased by 19.3 percent from 2021-2022. That could be a big help to the country, which has been suffering from a skills gap for several years.
In February, for instance, Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) estimated that the construction industry will need to attract 546,000 additional workers in 2023 — on top of the normal pace of hiring — to meet the demand for labor. Michael Bellaman, ABC president and CEO, said in a statement, “As the demand for construction services remains high, filling these roles with skilled craft professionals is vital to America’s economy and infrastructure rebuilding initiatives.”
Workboot brands such as Cat Footwear, which specialize in on-the-job gear, have been increasingly using their platforms to raise awareness about career opportunities in skilled trades, particularly among women and minorities. As of 2022, women made up 10.9 percent of the U.S. construction workforce (unchanged since 2020), while representation among Hispanic/Latino and Black construction workers has increased slightly to 34.3 percent and 6.7 percent, respectively.
