How to Hire & Manage Gen Z Effectively in the Trades

Gen Z is ditching college for the trades—we know that. Your job postings are flooded with applications from Gen Z recruits, but are you having the same luck getting them to come work for your company? Attracting Gen Z talent into trade jobs isn’t easy, and might require some updating to your recruitment process, and your operational workflows.

To help get you there, we’re going to cover:

• 5 reasons why Gen Z is ditching college for the trades
• How Gen Z will change the construction and field service workforce
• How to attract and hire Gen Z labor for your trade business
• How to adapt your ops & workflows to Gen Z contractors
• Gen Z workforce statistics relevant for construction teams that want to stay relevant
• How BuildOps can help manage your Gen Z contractors

Let’s start with why you find responses to your job postings overwhelmed with Gen Z hires.

5 reasons why Gen Z is ditching college for the trades

The National Student Clearinghouse reported in May 2025 that trade school enrollment at community colleges and vocational programs had grown by nearly 20% since the spring of 2020, indicating a trend toward young adults entering the trades. Here are a few reasons why the trades are more attractive than college:

1. Avoid student loan debt

With college tuition continually rising, a degree is becoming more expensive. Add that many young people don’t see the value of traditional college degrees, and are seeking alternative career paths that don’t come with a heavy dose of student debt.

2. Increasing use of technology in construction

The construction industry has seen a rise in the use of technology, including drones, robotics, AI, 3D printing, and improved software. Young people are attracted to the opportunity to use tech in their work.

3. Clear path for advancement

Most trades offer a clear path to learning and advancement, from apprenticeship programs to journeymen and beyond, creating a career rather than just a job. Young workers want to know what they need to do to advance, and they want to know that the opportunity exists before agreeing to a job.

4. Resistance against automation

Gen Z is attracted to the trades because they’re less likely to be taken over by new technologies, providing a sense of job security. As young people watch the growth of AI and related technologies, they see how these technologies have negatively affected other careers.

5. Influence of social media

Content on TikTok and Instagram has provided young people with access to real-life experiences and stories that have increased the appeal of the trades.

How Gen Z will change the construction and field service workforce

As Gen Z enters the construction and trade workforce in growing numbers, they will begin to shift the work environment in several ways:

1. Pushing for the adoption of more tech and less paper-based processes, as well as teaching older workers how to use new technology.
2. Increasing the focus on safety, particularly technology-enabled safety, such as wearable sensors, exoskeletons, and the use of robots for repetitive tasks. These tools help reduce the physically demanding nature of the work.
3. Increasing the diversity of the construction workforce and choosing companies with an inclusive work culture.

How to attract and hire Gen Z labor for your trade business

The key to attracting young workers to your trade business is recognizing that Gen Z seeks more than a job — they want a sense of purpose, mentorship, and career growth. You can help provide that kind of opportunity by doing the following:

Pay attention to your company culture

Company culture is the “feel” of your company and how your employees perceive it. Do you focus just on the numbers or on the people? Is safety really a priority, or is it all about production? Your culture starts at the top, so ensure leadership sets a positive example.

Communicate clearly

When communicating with younger workers, it’s important that they feel heard and know that their opinions matter. Train your supervisors to communicate constructively and demonstrate to younger workers that their input is taken seriously. Make sure you keep everyone in the loop with training, best practices, and jobsite knowledge.

Provide mentorship and training

Gen Z workers want a clear career path that shows how they can advance within a company. Map out the steps they need to take to rise through the ranks and gain more skills. Pair them with skilled tradespeople as mentors and provide ongoing training and certifications to help them build their skills.

Adopt new technology

Gen Z grew up with technology and expects their jobs to keep pace with it. By adopting new technology, you create an opportunity for them to apply their inherent skills. Leveraging technology for tasks such as reimbursements, scheduling, and payroll can improve their experience working with you.

Reach out to young people before they hit the job market

You can help demonstrate that the trades are the right path by partnering with high schools, trade schools, and community colleges to attract students before they enter the workforce. Career fairs, mock interviews, and other events provide a great opportunity to influence their career choices.

Use social media to showcase the benefits of a trade career

Share authentic day-in-the-life videos, photos, and stories that highlight the benefits of teamwork and career pride. Focus on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube, where young people are more likely to engage.

How to adapt your ops & workflows to Gen Z contractors

As the trades workforce becomes younger, contractors will need to move away from manual, paper-based systems in order to attract and retain workers. Adapting to these changes now will position your company for the future work environment.

Step 1: Make workflows digital and mobile-friendly

Implement project management, communication, and time-tracking tools that are easy to use in the field on mobile devices. Use tools such as Slack, Teams, instant messaging, or text messages for day-to-day communications. Include AI-powered tools to help improve work efficiency.

Step 2: Provide flexible scheduling

While this can be difficult in today’s production-driven industry, the more flexible scheduling options you provide, the more likely that Gen Z contractors will want to work for you. More than ever, young workers are looking for occupations that allow them to keep their work life balance in check.

Field service scheduling tools can help with this, offering you flexibility in how you schedule, and giving your Gen Z contractors unprecedented insight into their upcoming schedules, as well as the flexibility to move techs around when needed.

Step 3: Provide real-time feedback

Provide informal feedback on the quality of their work as it progresses and explain how it impacts the project and the community, as Gen Z workers are heavily focused on making a difference. Field service tools like BuildOps with powerful reporting features can take any field data and turn it into a report, including which techs are the most profitable, and what they’re doing on jobs that’s working compared to other techs.

Gen Z workforce statistics relevant for construction teams that want to stay relevant

Recent research indicates that the rise of the Gen Z labor pool in the construction industry is already underway, and companies need to act now to attract and retain this workforce.

• According to the US Department of Labor, in 2024, workers under the age of 34 accounted for 33% of all new hires in the construction industry. This means the talent pool is already in the industry; companies just need to capitalize on it.
• Research from Randstad shows that the average job tenure for Gen Z workers in their first five years of their careers is about one year. Further, one in three Gen Z workers plans to change jobs within the next year. It’s vital that trades companies do everything possible to retain workers.

A Thumbtack study finds that 9 out of 10 Gen Z graduates believe a skilled trades career offers a more reliable path to economic security than college. Companies need to continue offering competitive salaries and benefits packages to attract young workers.

How BuildOps can help manage your Gen Z contractors

With robust digital and AI-powered tools built for the trades, BuildOps offers streamlined workflows for time tracking, communication, service scheduling, and invoicing. Adopting these tools can help you attract and retain young workers, as they are more comfortable with technology than traditional paper workflows.

BuildOps can help you scale your hiring of Gen Z contractors, offering a mobile-first, field service app that seamlessly connects your techs to the office, and offers you flexible reporting for your contractors, pulling in data from every single field available in BuildOps. Try it out today to see how it can help modernize your Gen Z recruitment and retention.