Twelve Roswell High School seniors in Georgia signed letters of intent for skilled trades pathways during National SkillsUSA Signing Day.
The students are moving into skilled trades careers with support from SkillsUSA as the nation faces a construction worker shortage.
The event reflects a broader workforce need, as educators and industry groups work to close the gap between open skilled trades jobs and the number of trained workers.
Signing day isn't just for student athletes. High schoolers who commit to college sports after graduation are usually the focus of the special signing-day events. But in Georgia, a dozen Roswell High School students signed letters of intent for skilled trades careers, putting a local face on Georgia’s, and the nation’s, effort to build the construction workforce.
The Georgia event was part of the SkillsUSA National Signing Day, which takes place annually on May 6. The nationwide day encourages local chapters to honor students as they sign letters of intent for jobs, apprenticeships, internships, or continued career and technical education training.
According to a report from CBS News Atlanta, the twelve students marked National SkillsUSA Signing Day by committing to trade careers after graduation as the state continues to face a shortage of construction workers.
The event also reflects a broader workforce need, as educators and industry groups work to close the gap between open skilled trades jobs and the number of trained workers.
Some students plan to continue into technical education, while others are moving directly into the workforce in roles such as plumbing and electrical work. The event is part of SkillsUSA, the national workforce development organization that helps schools expand hands-on career and technical education and connect students to job pathways.
The skilled trades shortage could cost the U.S. economy $1 trillion a year, with 2.1 million positions for electricians, HVAC technicians, plumbers, pipefitters, construction equipment operators, and maintenance workers projected to go unfilled by 2030. JLL Research
The Roswell signing reflects a broader push to make trades careers more visible to students before graduation. Instructors and workforce groups increasingly frame those paths as a practical alternative to a four-year degree, especially for students looking for earlier earnings, hands-on work, and a clearer route into essential industries.
That visibility is also growing through student competition. In a separate metro Atlanta example, WSB-TV reported that Cobb Innovation and Technology Academy junior Ariela Vega became the first female student to win Georgia’s state HVAC competition in February.
Vega’s win is part of a broader push to address skilled labor shortages through earlier exposure to technical careers and wider participation in the trades.
The need for construction labor remains critical. According to a 2025 workforce survey from the Associated General Contractors of America and NCCER, construction workforce shortages were the leading cause of project delays, 92% of firms said they were having a hard time finding workers to hire, and 45% said labor shortages were causing project delays.
The economic consequences of a skilled labor shortage were brought to light in new research from real estate services company JLL.
In late April, JLL said the skilled trades shortage could cost the U.S. economy $1 trillion a year, with 2.1 million positions for electricians, HVAC technicians, plumbers, pipefitters, construction equipment operators, and maintenance workers projected to go unfilled by 2030.
Cobb Innovation and Technology Academy junior Ariela Vega became the first female student to win Georgia’s state HVAC competition in February 2026. That competition, like the signing day on May 6, 2026, was organized by SkillsUSA. Image: Cobb County School District
For contractors and workforce planners, these school-based programs matter because they help move students into the labor pipeline earlier. Roswell’s Signing Day event and Cobb’s HVAC milestone both point to the same issue, that is, employers need more trained workers, and schools are becoming a more visible part of the response.
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