By Tom Joyce
The Center Square

A coalition of government officials, corporate executives, and labor leaders is gathering in Washington next week to address what many see as the biggest obstacle to a new wave of U.S. infrastructure investment: finding enough skilled workers to build it.

BlackRock and Global Infrastructure Partners will host a U.S. Infrastructure Summit in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, March 11. The one-day event will bring together policymakers, business leaders, and labor representatives to discuss how the country can deliver major infrastructure projects while also expanding the skilled trades workforce needed to support them.

The issue has grown more urgent as billions of dollars in private investment flow into sectors such as semiconductors, energy, and artificial intelligence.

The Trump administration has attracted trillions of dollars in private investment commitments tied to infrastructure development and advanced manufacturing. However, those projects require a large workforce of electricians, construction workers, technicians, and other skilled trades.

BlackRock research estimates that infrastructure development alone could create hundreds of thousands of new skilled trade jobs over the next decade.

The summit’s speaker list reflects a broad coalition forming around the workforce challenge.

Participants include U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, and U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright. A bipartisan group of U.S. senators also are scheduled to attend, including Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., Sen. Todd Young, R-Ind., and former Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., President Donald Trump’s pick to succeed Kristi Noem as Department of Homeland Security secretary.

Corporate leaders scheduled to appear include Chevron CEO Mike Wirth, UPS CEO Carol Tomé, and NextEra Energy CEO John Ketchum. Labor leaders such as Teamsters General President Sean O’Brien and North America’s Building Trades Unions President Sean McGarvey will participate as well.

Policy experts from across the political spectrum will also speak. That includes American Compass founder Oren Cass and Progressive Policy Institute senior advisor Bruno Manno.

The Trump administration has pursued several workforce initiatives in recent months to address the labor shortage.

In April 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to prepare Americans for skilled trade jobs. Congress later approved Workforce Pell Grants, which extend federal financial aid to short-term job training programs. The administration released “America’s Talent Strategy,” a plan to better align education programs with workforce needs.

Officials have also set a goal of surpassing one million active registered apprentices nationwide.

Private companies have begun experimenting with workforce agreements to attract workers to expanding industries.

Last year, in the rail sector, Union Pacific and the SMART-TD union announced a “Jobs for Life” agreement guaranteeing lifetime employment for certain union workers following a proposed merger involving Norfolk Southern.

Supporters say the agreement demonstrates how companies and labor groups may find common ground when industries are growing and skilled workers are in high demand.

Summit organizers say the goal of the Washington gathering is to bring together leaders from across government, business, and labor to determine how the country can translate investment commitments into real projects and long-term economic growth.

Whether that coalition can turn shared concerns into coordinated action remains unclear.