Historically, the construction trades have relied upon generations of immigrants for labor. Many of them learned from their forefathers, taking great pride in their work. But, growing animosity about immigrant labor has hurt the construction trades.
Compounding the problem is the derogatory view of manual and skilled labor compared to ‘professional jobs.’ The construction industry continues to grapple with these issues, and many others, including the economic value and outlook of an engineering degree, and the need to focus on people even as we leap ahead with technology.