WFCA Pledges $1 Million to Solve Installer Shortage, Forms Education Foundation

The World Floor Covering Association (WFCA) announced it will donate $1 million in an industry-wide “We are Part of the Solution” initiative to address the installer shortage crisis.

The initiative includes the formation of the Floor Covering Education Foundation (FCEF), a new organization dedicated to recruiting, placing and retaining professional flooring installers, as well as creating scholarships for training. WFCA also announced that starting Jan. 1, 2020, in an effort to increase inclusivity, primary membership to WFCA will be free for all independent floor covering dealers.

“As an industry, we’ve got to stop talking about this issue, and we’ve got to start owning this issue,” WFCA CEO Scott Humphrey said of the installer shortage at a press conference on Dec. 12.

WFCA has been in contact with “major players” and other organizations in the industry, many of which have expressed interest in making financial commitments to the cause, as well, Humphreys said. The details of those donations are still being worked out.

“We believe that to get this thing started right, we’re looking at about $10 million, because there’s so much involved in the marketing aspect of this, the rebranding aspect,” Humphreys said. WFCA expects to spend the first half of 2020 laying the groundwork for FCEF, and by year three hopes to have raised enough money to award scholarships to about 5,500 students, Humphreys said.

According to a Floor Covering Leadership Council study, the industry will need to recruit roughly 6,000 new installers annually for the next decade in order to replace those moving out of the workforce. A 2018 WFB Wood Flooring Contractor Survey found that the average age of hardwood flooring contractors is 52.5.

In WFCA’s current plan, if installation training is offered at $4,000, FCEF would fund the first $2,000 for students, with the flooring company that hires the student putting up $1,000. Students would then pay the additional $1,000 via a “forgiveness loan,” meaning after working at the company for a year, the student would receive the $1,000 back from the flooring company.

Aside from scholarships, WFCA is also planning a mobile outreach initiative featuring 18-wheelers outfitted into mobile schools.

“Rather than bring people to us, we have to go to them,” Humphreys said, adding that the mobile schools could accommodate classes with up to 15 students. It expects to start out with two such mobile schools and grow the fleet if they are successful.

With the initial $1 million donation, WFCA said it hopes to inspire action and donations from all factions of the floor covering industry to aid in the initiative. It also plans to hold meetings with every player in the industry going forward.

“We’re not simply telling you about an issue that’s out there and telling you what’s involved, we’re asking you, we’re begging you to be part of the solution with us,” Humphreys said.

WFCA is still fine-tuning plans for FCEF and hopes to have more details to share by the time of The International Surface Event in January.

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