Slinging shingles on a roof in the Florida sun is backbreaking work that not many want or know how to do.
“There’s 50 million available jobs in the construction world for people with skill traits,” said Sean Shapiro, CEO of Reliant Roofing.
He said the company started doing things differently when they realized that it was hard to find good workers with knowledge of the trade.
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"We decided to buy out some houses for training. We train how to do roofing from scratch. They reroof the same houses over and over as practice,” Shapiro said.
Workers, recruited from restaurants and soccer fields, are paid while they learn.
Within 6 to 8 weeks, they’re out working with real crews.
“This is not just a job, it’s a career. That says it all. You’ll have work for the rest of your life,” said Juan Calle, who works for the company.
"Dirty Jobs" host Mike Rowe is passionate about this type of program.
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Reliant Roofing was recently featured on the Mike Rowe Works Facebook page.
His foundation is dedicated to overcoming the millennial mindset that a four-year degree is required for success.
Shapiro hopes his company is the start of that movement in Jacksonville.
“Hopefully, we can all join in and be a part of shortening that gap,” he said.