Skilled labor availability remains a key issue for contractors operating in construction markets, making apprenticeship programs and workforce recruitment important channels for building craft capacity. SMART Local 55 has organized a sheet metal professional in Eastern Washington and subsequently placed the worker with a union-signatory contractor.
The organizing effort began after Local 55 representatives connected with employees of a local nonunion contractor that uses training provided by the Construction Industry Training Council of Washington (CITC).
One of the workers contacted through the effort was Zyrian Laube, who worked in the nonunion sheet metal sector and served as a sheet metal instructor at CITC's Eastern Washington training center in Pasco.
Local 55 organized Laube in April 2026. Following the organizing effort, Laube was dispatched to a union-signatory contractor that needed skilled workers.
CITC operates state-approved registered apprenticeship programs covering multiple construction trades, including sheet metal. Its Eastern Washington training center operates in Pasco, the same city where SMART Local 55 is headquartered.
The development highlights the interaction between apprenticeship training, skilled-worker recruitment and contractor workforce needs. Local 55's organizing activities are focused on bringing additional skilled workers into its represented workforce across the Eastern Washington sheet metal market.
The organizing effort demonstrates how construction labor organizations can connect experienced workers and instructors with union-signatory contractors while expanding their skilled workforce. For contractors and construction owners, the activity also underscores the role of established training programs and experienced craft professionals in maintaining access to qualified sheet metal labor.
Source: SMART.
