From contractors to engineers to welders to maintenance and service technicians, skilled employees are the No. 1 resource the HVAC industry depends upon most to meet the growing demand for comfortable indoor climates. For example, the American Welding Society projects that by 2026 the U.S. will need 336,000 more welders. That need is driven by the number of currently unfilled positions, attrition, and new job positions generated by industry growth.

How is the HVAC industry going to meet the massive labor needs? We’ll only build the teams we need by recruiting, hiring, training, and retaining women for careers in essential HVAC professions. Inviting more women into the HVAC ecosystem will help close the labor gap it’s experiencing, and create a more diverse and approachable culture. The more welcoming we are, the easier it will be to backfill vacancies of skilled laborers and technicians brought about by the wave of retiring workers during the last 10 years.