Alaska trains construction workers, then struggles to keep them

Five years after they start, just 19% of Alaska's ironworkers — and 44% of its electricians and linemen — are still working in the trade, a 2025 state study found. It is a stark retention problem, layered on top of the state's persistent shortage of skilled construction workers.

The study, "Alaska's Transportation Workforce Detours," from the University of Alaska Anchorage's Institute of Social and Economic Research, tracked nine priority trades for the Department of Transportation. And demand is only set to grow. Alaska is projected to outpace national growth in all nine between 2022 and 2032, from electrical workers on down, with pile drivers the lone exception. One employer summed up the bind for researchers: "Am I gonna bid a job that I need 12 carpenters on and then go, 'Oh, I hope I can find them?'"

The trades also skew heavily male — women are 11% of laborers and 7% or less of every other trade. The study's suggested fix starts early, reaching students before they have chosen a path.

That is the thinking behind events like Alaska Construction Career Day, where more than 850 students toured trade booths at the state fairgrounds in Palmer in April, trying hands-on activities from more than 40 vendors. They came from Anchorage, the Mat-Su and rural, private and other schools. The next one is set for April 2027.