America’s ‘silent army’ of skilled tradespeople are retiring with no one to replace them—and the price tag could hit $1 trillion a year |
America’s ‘silent army’ of skilled tradespeople are retiring with no one to replace them—and the price tag could hit $1 trillion a year
The workers who keep America’s buildings running are disappearing—and the U.S. isn’t replacing them fast enough to keep the lights on, the servers cool, or the labs sterile.
By 2030, an estimated 2.1 million skilled trades jobs in the U.S. could go unfilled, with potential economic losses reaching $1 trillion annually, according to U.S. Department of Education estimates cited in a new report from JLL shared exclusively with Fortune.
The commercial real estate giant calls the electricians, HVAC technicians, plumbers, pipefitters, and maintenance workers who maintain the country’s built environment a “silent army”—a workforce that is aging out of the industry faster than it can be replaced.
“The silent army, as we normally call them, because they are hidden, invariably, behind the scenes, has been getting harder and harder not only to find, but retain in the industry,” Paul Morgan, JLL’s global COO of real estate management services, told Fortune. Plus, “you’ve got this impending retirement wave that has really been driving the industry a long period of time, and a lack of new entrants.”
Morgan is referring to the fact that millions of tradespeople in the U.S. are nearing or at retirement age. More than 1 in 5 construction workers are currently older than 55, according to Associated Builders and Contractors; as of May 2023, about 39% of electricians were 45 years old or older, a Consumer Affairs report shows; and there’s a 5:2 retirement-to-replacement ratio in manufacturing, construction, and other skilled trades, an Education Department report shows.
The supply-demand imbalance has hit crisis territory. Last year alone, nearly 600,000 jobs were posted for major skilled trades positions in the U.S., while only about 150,000 new workers entered the labor pool through apprenticeship programs, according to JLL.
The problem is particularly acute in facilities management. Some 39% of U.S. facilities managers are above the age of 55 and nearing retirement, compared with 28% across all occupations, according to another report from JLL in 2025. Meanwhile, electrician positions are projected to grow 9.5% through 2034—more than triple the 3.1% average for all occupations—while HVAC technician roles are expected to grow 8.1% over the same period, per JLL.
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