Wanted: A few good electricians — and plumbers – Retirements of the baby-boom generation are expected to hit manual-labor jobs hard. 1.6 million new workers needed by 2015

If you’re planning to rewire your house, install yard lights, or add another toilet, expect a long wait.

Plumbers and electricians are working long hours to keep up with the bounty of work piling up, leaving Park County residents waiting for weeks or even months for non-emergency service.

Tradesman are stretched thin due to the area building explosion, as well as a lack of skilled workers trained in the plumbing and electric fields.

By Tahlia Ganser, Enterprise Staff Writer

Full Story: http://www.livingstonenterprise.com/news/index.php#1797

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By January 2014, 52 percent of Xcel Energy’s current union workforce of about 2,200 will be eligible for retirement, according to the local union. Nationally, about 40 percent of utility-industry workers will be retirement-eligible by 2009, according to the North American Electric Reliability Council.

Retirements of the baby-boom generation are expected to hit other manual-labor jobs as well. The Associated Builders and Contractors expects the construction industry to need 1.6 million new workers by 2015 to compensate for retirements and new job openings.

With a younger generation more focused on attending college, blue-collar jobs could go begging.

"What is happening, this is a crisis. And it’s going to hit. There’s just no way around it. It’s getting worse as we go," said Mike Byrd, business manager for the local chapter of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.

By Zach Fox Denver Post Staff Writer

Full Story: http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_6165851