When I sat down to read The Daily Reporter’s recent piece on AI and apprenticeship, I expected another story about data centers. What I found instead was a conversation that speaks directly to one of the biggest questions facing Hispanic workers in construction:
How can they move up faster?
The article covers a talk in Milwaukee by Dr. Thomas Kriger, director of research and education at North America’s Building Trades Unions. What stood out to me most was how he came to see AI as a training tool. After watching teachers use it to build lessons and quizzes in a fraction of the time, his reaction was simple:
“I thought, that’s the apprenticeship system.”
That line stayed with me, because I see the same opportunity for the Hispanic community. Hispanic workers fill a large share of the crews on job sites across the country, but too few move into foreman, estimator, project manager, and owner roles. In my experience, the barrier usually isn’t skill. It’s time, access, and language. Many Hispanic workers learned the trade by doing it, not in a classroom, and the path from the field to the office has meant years of night classes, extra schooling, or waiting for someone to give them a chance.
This is where I believe AI can change the timeline.
A framer who wants to become an estimator can use it to practice takeoffs, learn to read plans, and have concepts explained in Spanish, at their own pace, after a long day on site. A crew lead preparing for a contractor’s license exam can turn a study guide into practice questions. A new business owner can get help making sense of a bid package, drafting a safety plan, or writing a clear scope of work. None of this replaces hands-on experience, but it can shorten the learning curve so that experience turns into advancement sooner.
One lesson I took from the article is to be careful with your information. Free AI tools can save what you type, which is a real risk for any business. For Hispanic contractors, that means a few simple ground rules: keep client details, bid numbers, and employee records out of free public tools, and treat AI as a study partner, not a filing cabinet.
For contractors, the opportunity goes beyond individual learning.
My takeaway is that the firms that use AI to train their people, through bilingual toolbox talks, clearer onboarding, and faster upskilling, will build stronger crews and promote from within.
That is how the industry grows the next generation of Hispanic supervisors, managers, and business owners, and how the people who build this industry also come to lead it.
The tools are new, but the goal isn’t. Construction has always depended on skilled people passing the craft forward, and AI offers one more way to do that faster and reach more of the Hispanic community. NHCA is here to help Hispanic workers and contractors take advantage of these changes, not be left behind by them. Connect with your local chapter and visit nhca.pro to get involved.
Read the full article here: Union construction speaker pitches AI as a tool for apprenticeship (The Daily Reporter, October 23, 2026)
Sergio Barajas is the executive director of the National Hispanic Construction Alliance, where he leads the organization’s work to expand capacity building, access to capital, and business opportunities for Hispanic contractors and construction professionals. Over a 30-year career spanning housing development, construction, and financing, he has held roles with the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals, Freddie Mac, the National Community Stabilization Trust, and the Los Angeles Housing Department. Based in San Diego, California, Sergio writes about workforce development, advocacy, and the role of the Hispanic construction workforce in building a stronger and more equitable industry.
Keep up with Sergio Barajas HERE!
