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Climate change has forced Californians to rethink how we design homes and buildings, the energy we use to power them, and the methods and systems we use to deliver that energy.
The North Far North region offers a variety of ECU career opportunities in both the residential and commercial sectors to help transform how we live and work. In particular, the region has a high demand for more efficient and sustainable heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration (HVACR) systems. Other in-demand occupations in the region include skilled electricians, plumbers, carpenters, and welders; solar photovoltaic installers; maintenance and repair personnel; civil engineers; and construction managers.
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Source: Lightcast 2023.3; QCEW, non-QCEW, Self-Employed. Compiled by the North/Far North Center of Excellence for Labor Market Research.
Construct, erect, install, or repair structures and fixtures made of wood and comparable materials, such as concrete forms; building frameworks, including partitions, joists, studding, and rafters; and wood stairways, window and door frames, and hardwood floors. May also install cabinets, siding, drywall, and batt or roll insulation. Includes brattice builders who build doors or brattices (ventilation walls or partitions) in underground passageways.
Bridge Carpenter, Cabinet Maker, Carpenter, Concrete Carpenter, Construction Carpenter, Form Carpenter, Framer, Maintenance Carpenter, Rough Carpenter, Scaffold Builder
Install, maintain, and repair electrical wiring, equipment, and fixtures. Ensure that work is in accordance with relevant codes. May install or service street lights, intercom systems, or electrical control systems.
Control Electrician, Electrical Journey Person, Electrical Troubleshooter, Electrician, Housing Maintenance Electrician, Industrial Electrician, Inside Wireman, Maintenance Electrician, Paper Mill Electrician, Wireman
Directly supervise and coordinate activities of construction or extraction workers.
Coal Mine Production Foreman, Construction Foreman, Construction Supervisor, Electrical Supervisor, Field Operations Supervisor, Field Supervisor, Insulation Foreman, Roustabout Field Supervisor, Sheet Metal Foreman, Site Superintendent
Assemble, install, alter, and repair pipelines or pipe systems that carry water, steam, air, or other liquids or gases. May install heating and cooling equipment and mechanical control systems. Includes sprinkler fitters.
Drain Technician, Fire Sprinkler Service Technician, Pipe Welder, Pipefitter, Plumber, Plumbing Installer, Residential Plumber, Service Plumber, Sprinkler Fitter, Steamfitter
Install or repair heating, central air conditioning, HVAC, or refrigeration systems, including oil burners, hot-air furnaces, and heating stoves.
A/C Tech (Air Conditioning Technician), HVAC Installer (Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning Installer), HVAC Mechanic (Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning Mechanic), HVAC Service Tech (Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning Service Technician), HVAC Specialist (Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning Specialist), HVAC Tech (Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning Technician), Refrigeration Mechanic, Refrigeration Operator, Refrigeration Technician (Refrigeration Tech), Service Technician (Service Tech)
Operate one or several types of power construction equipment, such as motor graders, bulldozers, scrapers, compressors, pumps, derricks, shovels, tractors, or front-end loaders to excavate, move, and grade earth, erect structures, or pour concrete or other hard surface pavement. May repair and maintain equipment in addition to other duties.
Back Hoe Operator, Engineering Equipment Operator, Equipment Operator (EO), Forklift Operator, Heavy Equipment Operator (HEO), Hot Mix Asphalt Operator, Machine Operator, Motor Grader Operator, Operating Engineer, Track Hoe Operator
Inspect structures using engineering skills to determine structural soundness and compliance with specifications, building codes, and other regulations. Inspections may be general in nature or may be limited to a specific area, such as electrical systems or plumbing.
Building Inspection Engineer, Building Inspector, Building Official, Code Enforcement Officer, Combination Building Inspector, Construction Inspector, Elevator Inspector, Home Inspector, Plumbing Inspector, Public Works Inspector
Install, set up, rearrange, or remove switching, distribution, routing, and dialing equipment used in central offices or headends. Service or repair telephone, cable television, Internet, and other communications equipment on customers’ property. May install communications equipment or communications wiring in buildings.
Broadband Technician, Central Office Technician, Combination Technician, Customer Service Technician (CST), Field Technician, Install and Repair Technician, Installer, Outside Plant Technician, Service Technician, Telecommunications Technician
Assemble, install, or maintain solar photovoltaic (PV) systems on roofs or other structures in compliance with site assessment and schematics. May include measuring, cutting, assembling, and bolting structural framing and solar modules. May perform minor electrical work such as current checks.
Installer, Photovoltaic Installer (PV Installer), PV Design Technician (Photovoltaic Design Technician), Solar Designer, Solar Installer, Solar Installer Technician, Solar Photovoltaic Installer (Solar PV Installer), Solar Technician
Operate or control an entire process or system of machines, often through the use of control boards, to transfer or treat water or wastewater.
Plant Operator, Process Operator (Process Op), Relief Operator, SCADA Operator (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition Operator), Waste Water Treatment Plant Operator (WWTP Operator), Wastewater Operator (WW Operator), Water Control Dispatcher, Water Plant Operator, Water Treatment Operator, Water Treatment Plant Operator
Prepare detailed drawings of architectural and structural features of buildings or drawings and topographical relief maps used in civil engineering projects, such as highways, bridges, and public works. Use knowledge of building materials, engineering practices, and mathematics to complete drawings.
Architectural Designer, Architectural Drafter, Architectural Draftsman, Civil Drafter, Computer-Aided Design Designer (CAD Designer), Computer-Aided Drafting and Design Drafter (CADD Drafter), Computer-Aided Drafting Designer (CAD Designer), Drafting Technician, Draftsman, Draftsperson
Fabricate, assemble, install, and repair sheet metal products and equipment, such as ducts, control boxes, drainpipes, and furnace casings. Work may involve any of the following: setting up and operating fabricating machines to cut, bend, and straighten sheet metal; shaping metal over anvils, blocks, or forms using hammer; operating soldering and welding equipment to join sheet metal parts; or inspecting, assembling, and smoothing seams and joints of burred surfaces. Includes sheet metal duct installers who install prefabricated sheet metal ducts used for heating, air conditioning, or other purposes.
Field Installer, HVAC Sheet Metal Installer (Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning Sheet Metal Installer), Sheet Metal Fabricator, Sheet Metal Installer, Sheet Metal Layout Mechanic, Sheet Metal Mechanic, Sheet Metal Worker
Raise, place, and unite iron or steel girders, columns, and other structural members to form completed structures or structural frameworks. May erect metal storage tanks and assemble prefabricated metal buildings.
Fitter, Iron Worker, Ironworker, Steel Fabricator, Steel Worker, Structural Steel Erector, Tower Hand
Install or repair cables or wires used in electrical power or distribution systems. May erect poles and light or heavy duty transmission towers.
Class Gloving Electrical Lineman, Class Rubber Gloving Lineman, Electrical Lineman, Electrical Lineworker, Lineworker, Power Lineman, Power Lineman Technician, Service Man, Third Step Lineman, Troubleman
The North region encompasses seven counties (El Dorado, Nevada, Placer, Sacramento, Sutter, Yolo, Yuba).
The Far North region encompasses 15 counties (Butte, Colusa, Del Norte, Glenn, Humboldt, Lake, Lassen, Mendocino, Modoc, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Tehama, Trinity).
Specialized skills are specific to the occupation, or group of occupations, and represent job-specific competencies.
Technical skills refer to the specific software and technology regularly encountered on the job.
Employability skills (sometimes referred to as “common skills”) are foundational skills that cross occupations and industries. Many common skills, like, communication and team work, are also considered soft skills.