According to the Associated General Contractors of America, 75 percent of construction companies nationwide are having trouble finding qualified workers.

Trade Hounds, which has developed an app to alleviate the hiring crunch by connecting construction companies with skilled workers and contractors, has teamed with SkillsUSA, a career and technical student organization serving more than 395,000 high school, college and middle school students

The goal of the partnership is to provide an online platform for trades students to connect with other workers in the industry to discuss job openings, safety, etc. Trade Hounds enables these students to develop a professional identity online that they can use to demonstrate their skills when seeking a job after graduation.

The Trade Hounds app is a cross between LinkedIn and Instagram, allowing construction workers to connect with each other to discuss their jobs, new work opportunities, their families and their life/work issues and share on the job photographs.