A Ford-backed coalition released a national report on the U.S. skilled-trades shortage, projecting 1.7 million job openings each year through 2035 while current training programs produce only 55 workers for every 100 needed. The findings build on Ford CEO Jim Farley’s effort to address a shortage of at least 2.1 million skilled-trades workers expected by 2030. The Alliance for America’s Skilled Trades, formed in July by Ford, BlackRock, Google and Carhartt, produced the report with Jobs for the Future and Burning Glass Institute. About 600,000 of the projected openings will be net-new jobs in AI, advanced manufacturing and energy. Ford is pursuing training, transportation and research initiatives while Farley also helped launch Michigan LIFT, a public-private innovation initiative involving JPMorgan Chase, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Michigan Central and Newlab.