Electrical linemen — pitched as high-demand job for veterans at Fayetteville event

The secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy visited Fort Bragg and Fayetteville Technical Community College on Tuesday to discuss energy issues for the military and Duke Energy's efforts to hire veterans as electrical utility linemen.

Secretary Dan Brouillette joined host U.S. Rep. Richard Hudson during the day for both functions. Hudson helped put together the bipartisan Blue Collar and Green Collar Jobs Development Act, which he supported for energy and manufacturing training.

Brouillette, who got his start in the energy industry as a welder, said that vocation "taught me a lot about the energy business that I now help influence."

"I'm very proud of the fact that ... approximately 35% of our workforce are veterans. They come from everywhere: Air Force, Navy — even the Navy, I should say — Army, Marine Corps, even the Coast Guard," he said of the Department of Energy. "It's very important that we hire these people. We help them transition away from military life and into the civilian sector."

On Tuesday morning, Brouillette and Hudson made their first appearance for an energy roundtable and tour on Fort Bragg.

The appearance was closed to the media.

Later at Fayetteville Technical Community College, the men listened to information on the school's lineman training program. After that, they watched a demonstration by Duke Energy linemen replacing an electric pole and installing a distribution transformer at the "pole farm" on the FTCC campus.

The pole farm, located on the northwestern end of campus, is where students are trained to become linemen.

The afternoon session was open to reporters.

FTCC has offered a lineworker program since the fall of 2018. This 370-hour course, part of the institution's Corporate and Continuing Education, was started in partnership with Fayetteville PWC, according to FTCC spokeswoman Catherine Pritchard.

The training includes building and maintaining electrical power circuits, equipment for overhead and underground construction, comprehensive review of voltage ratings, pole climbing, types and use of electrical tools and equipment, and electrical safety.

More than 60 students have graduated from the lineworker program since its inception, including the first woman graduate — Jacqueline Montero.

Jeff Brooks, a spokesman for Duke Energy, said before the session got underway that 10 community colleges statewide offer a similar lineman program.

"This is really about showcasing the program here at FTCC," Brooks said.

Mark Sorrells, the senior vice president for academics and student services, filled in for Larry Keen, who is th president of Fayetteville Tech. Sorrells told the modest gathering of onlookers that 45% of the lineworkers program graduates at FTCC "go straight to PWC."

The Fayetteville utility donated $11,000 in equipment to assist with the training, Sorrells said.

"Dr. Keen and the board of trustees placed a great emphasis on preparing individuals to transition into the workplace here in the region and feed the economic opportunities that lie in the Sandhills region," Sorrells said. "The electric line and ground (linemen) workers program here is very important. We know how essential it is to have safe, reliable electricity. We know because we are in 'hurricane alley.' We see lots of storms that come through.

"And we're very fortunate to have both PWC and Duke Energy in our state and in our community that's working, too," he said. "When the weather gets bad and the storms are out, your linesmen, your crews, are out there in the midst of it making sure our lights are on and we've got reliable and safe energy."

Lynn Good, the CEO of Duke Energy, one of the nation's largest energy companies, called Fort Bragg an important customer of the utility during her brief remarks.

"And where this all comes together is the program that Dr. Sorrells talked about — the partnership with PWC and the electric co-ops to really put training programs together to create the workforce of the future," Good said. "And it's an extraordinary opportunity for high-demand, high-paying jobs for veterans."