Data centres have become a major point of debate in the US as the AI boom pushes companies to build more of them. Critics have raised concerns about their impact on local communities, including heavy water use, rising electricity demand and noise.
But the rapid growth of data centres is also creating a large number of jobs, especially for people working in skilled trades.
Data centres are creating new jobs
“Currently there are hundreds of thousands of skilled trade roles open across the US just waiting to be filled,” Tim Chadwick, Google Data Centre Operations Area lead for Ohio and Indiana, wrote in a blog post.
“These are jobs like master electrician, lead pipefitter, and project manager, high-growth careers that offer long-term financial stability.”
The demand for workers is part of a much bigger shortage facing the US skilled trades sector. An estimated 2.1 million skilled trades jobs could remain unfilled in the US by 2030, according to estimates from the US Department of Education cited in a JLL report.
For workers, this means more career opportunities that do not require a four-year college degree. Instead, people can build these careers through technical training, apprenticeships and on-the-job experience.
The need for workers is expected to grow as more data centres are planned around the world. McKinsey estimates that data centres will need $6.7 trillion in investment through 2030 to keep up with the growing demand for computing power.
Google partners with veterans groups
Meanwhile, Google is also partnering with several veterans groups to help 25,000 veterans, service members and military spouses move into skilled trade careers as the US faces a shortage of workers in the sector.
The initiative, announced by Google on Thursday, will give veterans and military families access to pathways that can lead to certificates, college degrees and skilled trade careers across the US.
Google is working with organisations including Hiring Our Heroes, Student Veterans of America and the Home Builders Institute as part of the programme.
Chadwick is helping lead the initiative. Chadwick served in the US Navy for 21 years. He said the programme would “make it easier for veterans to make career transitions to high-growth careers like mine.”
“As a leader for Google’s data centres in Ohio and Indiana, I know there’s a major need for these types of professionals,” Chadwick said. Chadwick said the demand for these workers is only part of the reason veterans could be a good fit for such careers.
Data centre builders are struggling to find enough workers
The AI infrastructure boom has also drawn attention from some of the biggest names in the technology and business world.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, who has spoken out against AI “doomsday narratives”, has described the coming expansion as the “largest infrastructure build-out in human history”.
He has also said it will create “a lot of jobs.”
“The skilled craft segment of every economy is going to see a boom,” Huang told Channel 4 News in the UK in 2025. “You’re going to have to be doubling and doubling and doubling every single year.”
General Motors CEO Mary Barra has also said the US has a “societal problem” because skilled trade jobs have often been seen as less desirable than white-collar careers.
“We need to really make sure high school students understand this is a great career and frankly maybe a little more AI-proof than some others,” Barra told Fortune.
She said a technician could earn between $80,000 and $90,000, “Potentially even higher, depending on how many hours they work.”
Why the US is facing a skilled worker shortage
For decades, the US education system and labour market have focused heavily on the idea that students should go from high school to a four-year college degree.
Vocational and technician training received less investment and, in many cases, was treated as a less desirable career path. That has created a problem for employers in skilled trades. Many are now trying to replace an ageing workforce while also training enough new workers to meet rising demand.
The nature of these jobs can also make them harder to fill.
Skilled trade work can be physically demanding. Workers may have to work long hours and spend time outdoors in extreme weather. Construction jobs are also often tied to individual projects.
That means workers may have to move from one construction site to another after a project ends. In some cases, they may have to move across the country to find their next job.
This creates a particular problem for the data centre industry. A data centre project can create hundreds or even thousands of jobs while it is being built. But once the facility starts operating, the number of workers needed to maintain it falls sharply, often to only a few dozen.
A 2026 survey of construction companies working on data centre projects showed how serious the labour shortage has become. Around 58% of companies said they were facing greater competition for skilled workers, while 49% reported increased pressure on wages.
Another 37% said the availability of workers or subcontractors was their biggest challenge when trying to win or complete data centre projects.
The shortage has pushed several major companies to work on ways to rebuild the US skilled trades workforce.
Earlier this year, Ford, Carhartt, BlackRock and Google formed the Alliance for America’s Skilled Trades. The partnership is focused on creating better pathways for people to develop vocational skills and enter skilled trade careers.
Other companies are also joining the effort.