Hire Heroes USA CEO explains why military experience provides exceptional value that many employers fail to recognize.
Lowe’s, the Lowe’s Foundation and Hiring our Heroes are launching a skilled trades academy focused on helping military members and spouses transition into trades careers.
The program, which creates a bridge from active duty to civilian careers, aims to solve two national issues: the shortage of trades professionals in the country and the high unemployment rate among veterans and their spouses, according to Elizabeth O’Brien, senior vice president of events and programs at Hiring Our Heroes.
Young veterans have faced an unprecedented hardship, compared to their civilian peers, in attaining a job. In June 2025, the veteran unemployment rate was 3.7%, which is up from 2.9% the prior year, according to the Labor Department. However, the unemployment rate for military spouses is at about 21%.
Lowe’s and the Lowe’s Foundation, the company’s philanthropic arm, are investing $500,000 to help the program get off the ground.
Joe McFarland, Lowe’s executive vice president of stores, speaks in North Carolina as the company announces its Skilled Trades Academy for veterans. (Lowe’s )
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The Skilled Trades Academy is a six-week, in-person training program designed to help service members, veterans and military spouses launch careers in high-demand skilled trades through things such as Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) 30-hour certifications, resume building, interview preparation and networking with local employers.
The program specifically focuses on trades like HVAC, plumbing, electrical work and construction, and is being offered in various locations across the U.S., often in collaboration with local trade schools, unions or employers, with the first being in Jacksonville, North Carolina.
“We designed the Academy to be an intentional bridge to meaningful employment. In just six weeks, participants gain foundational skills in carpentry, plumbing, electrical and masonry, along with resume building, interview prep and networking,” O’Brien said. Though “solving the gap also means supporting veterans before they even separate from the military through SkillBridge programs, mentorship, and transition resources and ensuring employers understand how to translate military experience into civilian job requirements,” she added.
The Skilled Trades Academy program specifically focuses on trades like HVAC, plumbing, electrical work and construction. (iStock / iStock)
The program is also an approved Department of Defense SkillBridge opportunity, meaning it allows eligible transitioning service members to participate during their final 180 days of service, with command approval. It also comes at no cost to veterans or their spouses.
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Transitioning service member fellows must be within the last 180 days of transition from military service at the time of the six-week program, but military spouses and veterans do not have a required timeline for completing the program and may apply for any cohort.
Hiring Our Heroes ambassador U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Sgt. Dakota Meyer underscored why veterans excel in trades professions, telling FOX Business that “trades are built on precision, discipline, and teamwork – values every veteran knows well.”
Dakota Meyer, an ambassador for Skilled Trades Academy for veterans, speaking in North Carolina. (Lowe’s / Fox News)
Meyer added that “this program is a powerful way to continue serving, by shaping the infrastructure and industries that keep America strong.”
In addition to trying to solve veteran underemployment, the program will help the country replenish the skilled labor market as the supply of workers in the field is shrinking due to retirements and fewer young entrants.
For example, in order to simply meet the anticipated demand for construction services this year, the construction industry will need to attract an estimated 439,000 net new workers in 2025, according to a proprietary model developed by the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC). In 2026, the industry will need to bring in 499,000 new workers.
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“The U.S. is facing a critical skilled trades labor shortage that drives a $10 billion annual economic loss in the housing industry,” Lowe’s Foundation Director Betsy Conway told FOX Business, noting that the foundation has invested $43 million over the past two years in 60 innovative organizations like Hiring Our Heroes that offer scalable training solutions to overcome issues like this.
Part of solving these issues is having everyone collectively promote skilled trades and preparing the next generation for these fulfilling careers, which includes changing the narrative about these pathways, according to Conway.
