Boise, Id (CBS 2) — It's National Apprenticeship Week and according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, over 50 percent of the lineman work force is expected to retire opening up about over 100,000 new jobs by 2026.

"What that leaves is a huge deficit for skilled labor for line workers," says training supervisor for Northwest Lineman College, Nick Jones.

"We are hoping to bring in quality men and women into the trade and teach them the skills and knowledge and behavior to be successful."

Nick Jones says that the need for skilled lineman and women has already begun.

"A lineman is a person who essentially works on power lines across the country," Jones says.

These workers are the front lines.

Responding to outages, performing maintenance, and building power lines from the ground, up.

"Within the utility industry, safety is our number one priority," Jones says.

Northwest Lineman College has four campuses nationwide and offers three different programs, each being the next step on the path to becoming a journeyman lineman.

"Our electric worker students spend three-and-a-half to four hours a day in the classroom, about two subjects during that time," Jones says.

All courses are taught by master lineman and when they are not in the classroom studying, they are out in the field learning on the job skills, in a safe and secure environment.

"The field portion is about four hours a day. Learning how to climb a pole, frame poles, how to roll up a hand line, the basic fundamentals they need to know before they enter into the trade and be productive and safe on the crew," Jones says.

Jones tells CBS 2 News that the Northwest Lineman College's curriculum is standardized and teaches both the latest in electrical technology such as smart grids, all the way back to your standard transformer.

"Right out of the gate they graduate they walk on to a line crew, they are productive, they are safe and they are able to be an asset to their company," Jones says.

For more information on Northwest Lineman College click HERE.

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