TRACS program aims to fill jobs in Rochester construction trades

Kevin Oklobzija//May 15, 2024//

A new initiative aims to incentivize union construction apprenticeship programs. (File photo by Kevin Oklobzija)

Kevin Oklobzija//May 15, 2024//

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The County of Monroe Industrial Development Agency (COMIDA) has committed an allocation of $250,000 in each of the next three years to help establish a pipeline of workers for the building trades unions.

Training Rochester Adults in Construction Skills (TRACS) is an eight-week pre-apprenticeship program working directly with the Rochester Building Trades Council to train participants in the basics of a union construction career.

Participants will receive certifications and resources necessary to become preferred candidates of union contractors such as OSHA-30, traffic control training, scaffold training, first aid and CPR training. A stipend of $2,400 is paid throughout the course.

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“The Rochester community has an unprecedented amount of construction and filling the demand with well-trained tradespeople has been the priority of all organized unions in our area,” Joseph Morelle Jr., president and CEO of Rochester Careers in Construction, said in a news release. “TRACS is meeting the need by providing participants with the basic skills needed to enter a union apprenticeship program.

“TRACS has already put people to work, many of whom were unemployed before TRACS. We are meeting the needs of the industry; we are changing the lives of individuals and we are building the future of Monroe County.”

TRACS was establish in collaboration with Rochester Careers in Construction, Inc.; the Urban League of Rochester; the Rochester Building and Construction Trades Council; North American Building Trades Union; and TradeFutures.

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