Free Highway and Heavy Construction Training Starts on Monday, April 18 in Rochester, Minnesota
(ROCHESTER, Minn.) March 15, 2022 – Workforce Development, Inc. and Laborers Local 405 are offering a free four-week highway and heavy construction training course for minorities, women, and disadvantaged individuals. The deadline to apply is Friday, April 15. Classes start on Monday, April 18 through Friday, May 13 from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The class will be held at Workforce Development, Inc. (WDI) located in Heintz Center at Rochester Community and Technical College (RCTC) in Rochester.
This training is provided by an award from Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) for highway and heavy construction training, recruitment, screening and placement with contractors and supported by the City of Rochester and Destination Medical Center (DMC) to help contractors meet workforce participation goals on publicly funded projects. Workforce participation goals for women (8%) and people of color (15%) have been challenging for local contractors to meet, especially on highway and heavy construction projects, due to a lack of minorities and women trained to work in the field.
During the training, Local 405 Laborers Union trainers will conduct OSHA 30 and CPR/First Aid/AED training. Participants will also receive flagger training, qualifying them for flagger positions on MnDOT projects. Local contractors will have the opportunity to interview class participants.
Jobs in highway and heavy construction pay a competitive wage with benefits. Minnesota Prevailing Wage Highway and Heavy region 6, effective November 1, 2021, Labors (101) basic hourly rate is $30.51, plus $20.84 fringe rate for a total rate of $52.35 per hour. Fringe benefits for Local 405 include medical/dental/life insurance, pension, and training.