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qualified to counsel individuals who are considering careers in construc- tion. He worked in the Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers Union for several years, journeying out in 2014-15. When the market temporarily slowed, Torres switched gears to work as an instructor at a Los Angeles area pre-apprenticeship program, Flintridge Center. Over the next six years he held nearly every position at the nonprofit, ultimately rising to the rank of co-executive director.


Boots on the Ground He returned to work in the trades for a brief stint before accepting the position with AGC of California earlier this year. Torres said he was excited by the op- portunity to help develop Build Califor- nia’s career counseling and placement program to put boots on the ground on AGC of California member construction projects through jobsite placement and partnerships with pre-apprenticeship and apprenticeship training services. “Build California has done a great job


educating and encouraging the next gen- eration about how great careers in con- struction can be, through social and digital media, community outreach and events. We’ve set up an intake process that funnels the wide net into more of a one-on-one intake process that provides referrals and resources to people who are interested in construction careers and training,” he said. “Now, we are expanding our impact


through career counseling and actual placements with our AGC of California member companies and pre-appren- ticeship programs statewide,” Torres continued. “Our goal at Build California is to inspire, engage, and activate people to join the construction industry. We do this by breaking down barriers that would stop someone from starting a career in construction. We help them determine what their next step is, whether it’s a


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CALIFORNIA CONSTRUCTOR SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2024


pre-apprenticeship program, an opera- tions career path if they have a degree, or going to work in the industry and then help facilitate that process. If they’re ready to go straight to work, we connect them to an AGC-member contractor who is looking for qualified people.”


Filling a Need at Clauss Construction One AGC of California member company with firsthand knowledge of the value Build California can bring to putting boots on the ground of its jobsites is Clauss Construction. Headquartered in the San Diego area with a satellite office in Las Vegas, the specialty contractor has over 25 years of experience in planning, managing, and executing challenging, large-scale demolition, remediation, and hazardous material abatement projects nationwide. “We do a lot of specialty trade stuff.


Some of it, like the federal decommis- sioning work that we do, is really niche,” said Clauss Construction General Su- perintendent Benny Garcia. “To find the level of workers and quality of workers (we need) is sometimes complicated.” Tis year the company found itself


in dire need of more workers during the busy summer construction season, Garcia noted. “We were struggling to get qualified and trained workers for our projects down


here in Southern California.” At the recommendation of his AGC of


California contact in Northern California, Garcia reached out to Daniel Torres to see if Build California could help. He credits Torres and Build California with helping fill an immediate workforce need by con- necting him with several newly trained workers who had recently gone through the Build California system. “We had a high priority project that


my GC was really pushing me to get more personnel on the ground, and (Build California) filled a big need that I had at the moment,” Garcia said. “Working with Daniel was a pleasure, honestly.” He added, “I had heard about Build


California in the past and the connections that they facilitate to get people certified and get people trained and qualified for working in the industry, but I had never heard of their involvement when it comes to basically getting workers to contractors. Daniel told me he had five graduates right then that had gone through the (Build California counseling) system that he could vouch for and who and were eager and motivated – and they truly are!” “These guys came in hard working and motivated,” Garcia said. “One of them turned out to be a pretty good lead worker who is now bouncing between three of our projects.”


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