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City and district explore pipeline from school CTE shops into municipal trades
Summary
Springfield officials proposed a labor‑management committee to pilot pathways from high school CTE programs into in‑house facilities trades, citing municipal staffing needs and wages that can reach $40 an hour.
City and school officials proposed building a formal pipeline to move graduating CTE students into municipal trades jobs during a joint presentation to the Springfield School Committee.
Patrick Roche, the city’s chief financial officer, and John Carrigan, who oversees the district’s facilities operations, said the city maintains a 40‑person in‑house trades group that performs maintenance across roughly 110 municipal and school buildings and could offer on‑the‑job experience and jobs for graduating students.
Why it matters: City trades jobs carry wages and benefits that can provide stable careers to students who complete vocational programs; staff presented the pipeline as a way both to provide employment opportunities for graduates and to recruit skilled workers for municipal maintenance and capital projects.
What officials proposed: Roche said the city is negotiating with unions and plans to create a labor‑management committee that would include Putnam staff and city tradespeople; the committee would pilot specific trades placements and then scale successful pilots. Carrigan listed possible disciplines for initial pilots — electrical, carpentry, HVAC, sheet metal and controls — and said the facilities department is currently managing thousands of open work orders and major summer projects.
Staff framed the effort as an internal partnership rather than a program that would remove current city jobs; they emphasized pilots and MOUs to clarify roles. Roche said trades jobs can pay about $40 an hour with full benefits and pension, making the positions an attractive post‑graduation option.
Ending: Committee members supported beginning talks immediately; officials said they will start work on pilots and a labor‑management committee with the unions and report back to the committee about timelines and next steps.
