Ford Motor is taking on a key bottleneck to an American manufacturing renaissance-not enough workers.
The auto maker will host business leaders in Detroit to address an industrial labor shortage that is already here.
Today, according to Ford, more than 18 million American workers are in skilled trades. But the company estimates 1.7 million job openings each year for roughly the next decade as workers retire and manufacturing grows.
Right now, though, the U.S. is training about 55 skilled workers for every 100 needed, according to the Alliance for America's Skilled Trades.
"No single company can close the skilled trades gap alone. Training just 55 workers for every 100 needed puts economic growth at risk and leaves people without a clear path to a good career," said Ford CEO Jim Farley in a statement.
"Employers, educators and policymakers must work together to help people get the training, support and jobs they need to succeed," he said
McKinsey and Co., a management consulting firm, estimates manufacturing would need 1.4 million more workers if existing factories were running at full capacity.
"The business case is driving more towards domestic manufacturing," McKinsey's Mike Conway tells Barron's, which means more domestic jobs.
Automation is often cited as a solution to manufacturing growth, but automation doesn't typically replace workers, it changes the skill set they need.
Automation brings "higher need for integrators, maintenance techs, technicians," he adds.
At Ford's event, called "Accelerate," Farley will speak along with several other business leaders, including BlackRock's Larry Fink, Alphabet's Ruth Porat, and U.S. Steel's David Burrit.
Government officials will attend, too, including Education Secretary Linda McMahon and Mike Duffy, the Defense Department's acquisition chief.
To be sure, investors prefer to focus on earnings and don't spend a lot of time thinking about labor trends. Still, it's a good idea to check in from time to time, and make sure corporate leaders have a handle on any problems.
In Wednesday trading, Ford stock was up 0.1% at $12.28. Shares are down about 6% this year after falling 11% over the past month.
Ford's 2026 profits are expected to be in line with last year's. But high oil prices, which can impact consumer spending, have sapped some investor optimism.
