Even in the age of artificial intelligence, powered in part by semiconductors made in Arizona, chip factories still need people.
Aziz Safa, an Intel executive who has worked on factory automation, said AI is no replacement for a trained semiconductor workforce.
“Factories require head count,” Safa said.
Arizona is taking the lead in a new effort to train those potential workers for the fast-growing semiconductor industry in the southwestern United States, from students learning about chips in school to adults preparing for technical jobs.
The Arizona Commerce Authority will lead the Southwest regional node of the National Network for Microelectronics Education, or NNME, which spans Arizona, Colorado, Utah, New Mexico and Southern California, ACA Chief Workforce Officer Kolu Wilson said during a Tempe event announcing the partnerships.
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The Southwest node is one of four initial regional hubs announced nationally under the NNME, alongside regional nodes led by organizations in Texas, New York and Idaho.
What is the Southwest node and what will it do?
Wilson said the node includes more than 47 partners across education institutions, including the University of Arizona and the Maricopa Community College District, and semiconductor companies such as Intel.
Wilson said the partnerships will continue “building out the education, training, and career pathways in the semiconductor industry.”
Aziz Safa, vice president at Intel Corporation, speaks during a news conference this week at the Arizona Commerce Authority in Tempe.
The initiative includes programs ranging from K-12 exposure efforts to six-week credentialing programs, community college training and graduate-level engineering pathways. The announcement event was held at Junior Achievement of Arizona’s BizTown facility in Tempe, a mock city where students can learn about careers through simulated businesses.
Wilson said the initiative includes a funding opportunity for Arizona tied to the Southwest node, which can pull from programwide funding worth up to $20 million over five years, including $5 million in the first year, but said the node is intended to collect and distribute resources across all partners in the Southwest region.
Shari Liss, vice president of global workforce development at SEMI, said the initiative comes as the semiconductor industry faces growing labor shortages tied to domestic manufacturing expansion.
Citing consulting firm McKinsey & Company, Liss said the semiconductor industry in the U.S. is projected to need about 150,000 additional workers nationwide by 2030 as domestic chip manufacturing expands in the United States.
“We need so many people in this industry across the country,” Liss said. “Without workforce, none of this works.”
What is NNME?
The National Network for Microelectronics Education is a federally backed workforce initiative designed to help build talent pipelines for the semiconductor industry as domestic chip manufacturing expands across the United States.
According to the Arizona Commerce Authority, the network is supported by the National Science Foundation and Department of Commerce and operated by the SEMI Foundation.
The initiative is intended to connect employers, schools, universities, workforce organizations and government agencies around semiconductor workforce development.
Why Arizona is leading the Southwest
Arizona has emerged as one of the country’s largest semiconductor manufacturing hubs following major expansions from companies including Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Intel and Amkor.
The Arizona Commerce Authority said the Southwest node includes those industry partners as well as Micron Technology, Applied Materials and Lam Research.
Wilson said Arizona has attracted more than 70 semiconductor industry expansion projects since 2020, representing more than $214 billion in investment.
“With this growth comes tens of thousands of hands-on jobs and an urgent need for scalable industry-driven training pathways,” Wilson said during the May 27 event.
Economists say the workforce challenge comes as Arizona’s broader labor market has shown signs of cooling in recent months.
Zachary Milne, senior economist and research analyst at the Common Sense Institute Arizona, said the semiconductor industry is likely to see continued demand for skilled workers.
“There’s clearly a lot of demand for the materials that these companies are producing,” Milne said, adding that demand is driving the need for “very specific high-skilled labor.”
He said the initiative could help if it aligns education and training programs with companies’ specific labor needs.
What jobs are companies trying to fill?
Industry officials said the largest workforce gaps currently involve semiconductor technicians, operators and engineers.
Liss said semiconductor companies are seeking workers ranging from process, electrical and chemical engineers to equipment operators, maintenance workers and research staff.
Safa said employers also are looking for more technical workers who can move into jobs more quickly.
“To stay competitive, we have to introduce quite a bit more technical talent into the industry,” Safa said during the event.
Milne said Arizona’s broader labor-market data remains complicated, even as slow job growth, slightly rising unemployment and falling labor force participation point to some cooling.
“The frustrating part is that the data is just so noisy that it’s much harder these days to really pin it down and say definitively what’s going on,” Milne said.
But he said demand for semiconductor jobs is likely to remain relatively sustained because of the investments in Arizona and demand tied to AI and advanced technology.
What kinds of training programs are involved?
Wilson said the initiative includes programs ranging from K-12 career awareness efforts to six-week credential programs, community college training and graduate-level engineering education.
The Southwest node also plans to expand hands-on learning opportunities including cleanroom access, internships, fellowships and pre-apprenticeship programs, according to the ACA.
One major focus involves expanding hands-on semiconductor training opportunities at Arizona community colleges.
Wilson said Gateway Community College is developing a mock semiconductor clean room with 11 modular training stations designed to simulate work inside an actual fabrication facility.
The ACA said the node also will focus on increasing access for rural and underserved communities while expanding K-12 STEM engagement efforts.
Can Arizona keep up?
Milne said Arizona can support semiconductor growth, but housing affordability could affect the state’s ability to bring skilled workers here.
“Housing is the largest driver of the affordability crunch,” he said.
Milne said Arizona can continue growing while improving affordability, but said housing policy and zoning restrictions will play a major role in whether the state can efficiently add enough housing for future workers.
He said more affordable housing could make Arizona more attractive to skilled workers needed by semiconductor employers and other growing industries.
