On the First Day

City Machine said: “Let there be skills”

City Machine Technologies, Inc., the Youngstown company which has played headliner of late, has established National Skilled Trades Day to increase awareness about the benefits of skilled trades jobs in the United States and to celebrate skilled trades workers. National Skilled Trades Day will be observed on the first Wednesday in May annually, as proclaimed by the Registrar at National Day Calendar. The inaugural National Skilled Trades Day will be celebrated on May 1, 2019.

Over the last 30 years, interest in skilled trades jobs has dropped drastically due to an increased push to four-year degrees from universities and colleges. Only 20% of high school seniors have indicated that they have an interest in or will enter a skilled trade job or trade school following high school graduation; this percentage is expected to remain the same or decrease over the next few years. This, coupled with the fact that over 50% of workers currently in skilled trades jobs are at or nearing retirement age, has led to labor shortages in many skilled trades fields. City Machine Technologies has established National Skilled Trades Day to help celebrate those who are employed as skilled trades workers, inform the community about the benefits of skilled trades jobs, and encourage those who are considering entering trade schools or trade jobs.

Skilled trades jobs vary from mechanics to machinists, electricians to construction workers, welders to bakers, and hairstylists to respiratory therapists. “If we are going to create growth in our communities, we have to celebrate those in skilled trades,” says Claudia Kovach, Vice President of CMT. “These jobs are fundamental to communities but are vastly underrated. It’s rewarding to roll up your sleeves and put in an honest day’s work.”

National Skilled Trades Day will be celebrated on the first Wednesday in May annually. In 2019, it will be celebrated on May 1. City Machine Technologies, Inc. will celebrate in a variety of ways, including catering lunches for their associates and working to raise awareness about the benefits of skilled trades jobs in their community of Youngstown, Ohio. This will include welcoming students from a local career and technical center’s machining program in for a tour of the CMT facility.