Changing lives – one construction job at at time

CHICAGO — When it comes to considering if a career in the Union construction trades is the right fit for them, the young men and women who came to the 9th annual Construction Conference and Expo Aug. 17 made the choice to make their NEXT decision be their BEST decision.

The Expo, hosted by St. Paul Community Development Ministries (SPCDM) and sponsored by CISCO, allowed participants to understand how apprentices work and what various construction careers requires. “If anybody want’s to change their life, the Union construction trades are here for you,” explained Powering Chicago Executive Director Elbert Walters III. He stressed that access, opportunity and availability are important traits to becoming successful.

Union reps got a chance to talk with individuals looking to better their lives with a new career in the construction trades during St. Paul Community Development Ministries annual Construction Conference and Expo. Photo courtesy of CISCO

Some of the Expo’s participants are currently enrolled in Next Step, a 12-week pre-apprentice program offered by SPCDM. It helps people prepare for entry into a USDOL registered apprenticeship program. To date, Next Step has placed more than 246 individuals, many of them women and people of color, into the Union construction trades.

A Cement Masons’ and Plasterers’ Local 502 instructor explains to Expo attendees how proper technique, when laying brick, is important to the overall project. Photo courtesy of CISCO

Pastor Kevin Ford explained that the Next Step program is about getting ready to go upstairs. “Once in the trades, you begin to move up and climb from apprentice to journeyman, start attending Union meetings, becoming a business agent, coordinator and even an international representative of a Union,” Ford said.

CISCO Executive Director Dan Allen said the Next Step pre-apprenticeship program’s success rate is incredible. “We need young people to be the next generation of skilled trades men and women – along with our Union contractors, to build this amazing city, state and country,” Allen explained. Photo courtesy of CISCO

After the Expo, many participants opted to stay for a pre-test assessment to determine their math and language skill level.

CISCO Executive Director Dan Allen said there has never been a better time to begin a career in the construction trades.

“Unions are supplying the next generation of construction workers who will build the infrastructure needed to replace our country’s outdated roads, bridges, transit systems and more, which is coming from President [Joe] Biden’s Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, a $1 trillion infrastructure bill,” Allen explained.

Along with various Chicagoland Union reps at the Expo, several Union contractors also participated, such as WE O’Neil and Power Construction, who were able to show participants current and future projects they are working on.

See below for more photos of our event

(Left photo) Union reps from the Hill-side based SMART Local 73 explain to this woman how members install HVAC and perform HVAC fabrication. (Right photo) This LiUNA rep points out that the Laborers’ apprenticeship program is 2 years. Working as a Laborer provides a well-paid career and is a career that is always in demand – all WITHOUT the need for a college degree or student debt. Photos courtesy of CISCO

Edward Walker attended SPCDM Next Step pre-apprentice program and went on to find a career as a Tilesetter. Previously, Walker worked 25 years in the maintenance field. After going through the program, “it turned my life around – immediately,” he said. “Getting a job in the construction field is the best thing you can do for yourself, ” he added. Photo courtesy of CISCO

New Tabernacle of Faith Baptist Church Pastor Paul Jakes, U.S. Congressman Danny Davis (7th District), CISCO Executive Director Dan Allen and St. Paul Church of God in Christ Community Development Ministries President Pastor Kevin Ford. Photo courtesy of CISCO

We’ll see everyone next year at St. Paul Community Development Ministries (SPCDM) for the 10th annual Construction Conference and Expo. Photo courtesy of CISCO

Stepping up When Opportunity Knocks

Aug. 18, 2022

CHICAGO – For the past eight years, CISCO has partnered with a church on Chicago’s South Side to promote careers in the building construction trades to young men and women with a hands-on trades fair. The church then offers a free, 12-week pre-apprenticeship training program as a way to best prepare these men and women when it comes time to apply for a construction apprenticeship program. 

CISCO Executive Director Dan Allen said over the years, many seeds of hope have been planted at the Expo, allowing many men and women the opportunity to become aware of a successful career in the construction trades. Photo courtesy of CISCO

“CISCO’s Education-to-Careers program is humbled to have helped so many young people obtain careers in the various Union trades,” CISCO Executive Director Dan Allen told guests. “The collaboration of Union contractors and the building trades is vital to attracting the next generation of skilled men and women into our industry – which is our life blood.”

The annual Construction Conference & Expo, held at St. Paul Church of God in Christ, brings Union representatives from numerous construction trades together, allowing them to discuss with the public their specific requirements to enter into their apprenticeship programs, along with the benefits of a career that offers competitive pay, pensions and health care. 

Many of the Unions, like the bricklayers, carpenters and trowel trades, allowed the public to perform hands-on work, such as laying brick and measuring and cutting wood to certain specifications. At this year’s Expo, two Union representatives the Bricklayers Local 21, representing the Administrative District Council 1 of Illinois Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers, had both gone through St. Paul’s pre-apprenticeship program years earlier.

Miles Afriyie, 22, and Eddie Martin, 37, both 2nd year apprentices, completed the pre-apprenticeship program in 2019 and 2020, respectively, and both said the program allowed them to be better prepared for their apprenticeship exam.

“Honestly, [St. Paul] is the one that got me to where I am right now,” Afriyie explained. “They told me everything I needed to do, which translated into my apprenticeship program, which translated into me working.”

Afriyie’s training and talent has qualified him to compete next month in Boston at the 2022 BAC/IMI International Apprentice Contest after placing 4th in July’s regional North Central Apprentice Contest where contestants were given a blueprint and allowed four hours to build. They were given a combined score on their masonry skills and written test.

Second year bricklayer apprentice Miles Afriyie is pictured competing at the regional level of the North Central Apprentice Contest where he placed 4th, allowing him to move on to Boston next month to compete at the 2022 BAC/IMI International Apprentice Contest. He’ll be keeping his eye on the little details, which judges told him are important and can mean the difference between 1st and 2nd place. Photo courtesy of International Masonry Institute

Martin had always wanted to work in construction, but didn’t know how to apply for a trade. Walking around the Expo in 2020 and listening to what different Unions had to offer opened his eyes to the work they perform and what qualifications are needed to apply.

“I always had a passion to build things, and now I get to step back and actually see what I built, and I can show my family. It’s something I can be proud of,” Martin explained.

He wishes more organizations like CISCO and St. Paul would expose the Union construction trades to others, allowing people to understand there are other avenues besides college or starting work right away. “[College is just not for everybody. People need to know there are other options.”

Pastor Kevin Anthony Ford, president of St. Paul Community Development Ministries (SPCDM), said his ministry’s pre-apprenticeship program and a career in the building construction trades allow men and women to stand toe-to-toe with opportunity.

Pastor Kevin Anthony Ford, president of St. Paul Community Development Ministries (SPCDM), said the annual Construction Conference & Expo, along with its pre-apprenticeship program, have open the doors of opportunity to allow men and women to walk through and secure a successful career in the building construction trades.

“I see a future for these men and women, and the future looks bright. We are the changemakers for them. We want to see the doors of opportunity open for anyone who desires to enter an apprenticeship program and make their way in the construction industry,” Pastor Ford said.

Ford would like young people to understand that – with the help of a career in a Union, it will allow them opportunities and hope – as long as they have the catalysts in place, like the recent trades fair, to put them in a position to create wealth and later, generational wealth.

Miles Afriyie, kneeling left, and Eddie Martin, right, both apprentice bricklayers with Local 21, show guests at the Aug. 18 St. Paul Construction and Conference Expo the proper technique to apply mortar to brick. Photo courtesy of CISCO

A Union rep from Pipefitters Local 597 discusses with a man how pipefitters lay piping systems for installation and assembling equipment. Photo courtesy of CISCO

After listening to instructions, this woman uses what she learned and applies it to the task at hand. Many of the Unions present at the Trades Fair allowed guests to get hands-on experience for a true understanding of the work and skill level involved. Photo courtesy of CISCO