America’s Workforce Academy will start in four states, offer free credentials and paid training, and feed workers into contractors building Meta’s expanding U.S. AI data center network.
Meta said it is committing $115 million in the program’s first year to America’s Workforce Academy, a cost-free skilled trades and data center technician training initiative tied to the company’s U.S. AI infrastructure expansion. The program will pilot this year in Louisiana, Ohio, Indiana, and Texas, and graduates will receive credentials from the National Center for Construction Education and Research and an America’s Workforce Certificate. Meta said graduates will move into full-time roles with general contractors working on its data center buildout, while partner Associated Builders and Contractors said it expects to train thousands of people. The effort is part of Meta’s broader infrastructure push, which Reuters said is linked to a $600 billion U.S. spending pledge over the next three years as CEO Mark Zuckerberg pursues large AI data centers. The announcement also highlights a broader labor shortage in trades such as electricians, welders, plumbers, and fiber technicians, even as data centers typically create far more construction jobs than permanent on-site roles once operational.