California’s water workforce is aging. Promoting the next generation of workers is essential

A career building and maintaining California’s water and wastewater treatment systems may be unglamorous, failing to spring to mind — at least it did for me — when young people contemplate their future careers.

However, the state faces a looming shortage of workers in these critical roles. It is imperative to support local, state and federal policies that help fill them. 

Some 17 million workers will be retiring from infrastructure jobs during the next 10 years, taking their skills and institutional knowledge with them, as the workforce ages. According to a US Water Alliance report, approximately one-third of water utility operators are eligible to retire during the next decade. In 2018, Brookings projected that water utilities must fill 9,200 water treatment positions annually.

While President Biden and Congress agreed to spend $1 trillion on thousands of infrastructure projects, including $50 billion alone on water resilience projects in the West, California needs to ensure that there are enough workers equipped with the know-how and sweat equity to build and operate these projects.

These are jobs that get your hands dirty. It’s work that makes a difference. It typically requires less formal education than many other jobs, but can offer a lifelong career, good pay and solid opportunities for advancement. Infrastructure work pays 30% more to lower-income workers and those just starting their careers, relative to all jobs nationally.

I got my own start after high school by joining my brother’s remodeling business — kitchens, bathrooms and the like — in San Jose, where I grew up. But a friend in Sacramento stumbled into wastewater collections for Sacramento County and encouraged me to visit his plant. There I discovered the range of jobs available: electricians, control technicians and treatment and distribution operators.

Even though I pursued online specialty courses, it took a few years for my first job in the water industry to come together.

My work requires lots of on-the-job training, but all of it is teachable and learnable. Once hired, workers can bid through labor unions for other available positions they’re qualified for. Even if they decide to go elsewhere, they’ll leave the department knowing how a water distribution system works.  

I have noticed that more attention is being paid these days to proactively recruit water industry workers, helping them understand the training and skills needed to grow in the industry. Last fall, I even told my story to a joint session of the California Public Utilities Commission and the California Workforce Development Board, as the state seeks to widen doors to infrastructure jobs, especially for disadvantaged workers. 

When I entered this field, serendipity was my guide. Today, there are resources such as the EPA report “Making Water a Career of Choice,” with case studies of utility-worker pathways to encourage more people to consider working in water systems. In the years ahead, tens of thousands more workers will be needed to meet California’s water delivery and other infrastructure needs, and more effort required to attract new talent into this crucial industry.

While work in the water industry may seem obscure, it is rewarding, meaningful and essential for the wellbeing of communities throughout our state. Promoting community college, state university, private sector and state and federal programs designed to inspire and train the next generation of water infrastructure leaders is vital for California’s future.

Encouraging more young people to enter this career field will not only help California meet its mushrooming needs, but will provide important, well-paying work for those who don’t mind rolling up their sleeves to keep California’s water pipelines flowing. 

Financial support for this story was provided by the Smidt Foundation and The James Irvine Foundation.