251: The Infrastructure Buildout and the Skilled Trades We’re Missing

About this episode

The episode discusses the critical role of skilled trades in the global infrastructure boom and the challenges in workforce development.

Skilled trades are becoming one of the most important — and overlooked — drivers of the global infrastructure boom. As trillions of dollars flow into energy systems, transportation networks, telecoms, and AI data centers, the constraint is no longer just capital — it’s labor. The scale of the infrastructure buildout is historic, but delivering it depends on the availability of trained workers. In this episode of The Bid, host Oscar Pulido is joined by Claire Chamberlain, Global Head of Social Impact and President of the BlackRock Foundation, and Sandra Lawson, Managing Director in Global Corporate Affairs, to explore why skilled trades are central to the next phase of infrastructure investing. With an estimated $85 trillion in global infrastructure investment needed over the next 15 years, demand for electricians, HVAC technicians, grid specialists and plumbers is accelerating. Claire and Sandra explain how apprenticeship-based career pathways offer paid training, competitive wages, and the prospect of long-term financial stability — while also highlighting the growing supply-demand imbalance in the labor market. The conversation explores how philanthropy, employers, unions…

People in this episode

Host: Oscar Pulido

Guests: Claire Chamberlain, Sandra Lawson

Topics covered

• skilled trades
• infrastructure
• labor market
• apprenticeship
• economic success
• workforce development

Keywords

• infrastructure
• skilled trades
• labor market
• apprenticeship
• economic growth
• training capacity
• workforce development

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: BlackRock

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