Fabien Piersanti: "The 2024 edition is an excellent vintage"!
For over 22 years, Les Coulisses du BTP, the iconic event to attract young people in Var, has been promoting trades and careers...
PROMOTING CAREERS The 22nd edition of Les Coulisses du BTP in Var on October 10 and 11 was an excellent vintage. It even showed a highly positive balance sheet with 6 open sites. Thus, 5 construction sites and one wood joinery workshop welcomed 800 visitors, including 680 school students, 70 job seekers, and 50 young people from local missions.
Nationally, 265 sites were opened and visited by 75,000 school students and 1,000 job seekers. "Les Coulisses du BTP is an iconic initiative of the Fédération which is the symbol of its long-term commitment to promoting construction trades and careers among young people. They were created by the Fédération Française du Bâtiment in 2003, the date of the first edition.
In Var, the initiative was rolled out across the entire Building and Public Works sector, opening construction sites of all activities to the public. As early as 2002, our Fédération had already mobilised to promote these careers to young people with the Var Bâtiment operation, which welcomed year 10 (3ème) school students to a massive construction site recreated on the forecourt of the Zénith de Toulon. The objective was to stem the decline in enrollment in apprenticeships and vocational high schools.
The operation was run until 2005 in parallel with Les Coulisses, and was then abandoned in favour of Les Coulisses," recalled Fabien Piersanti, president of the Fédération du BTP du Var.
He added: "Since 2003, the figures have been staggering, with nearly 17,000 visitors welcomed in Var and 120 sites opened to the public over 22 years. Nationally, 1,700,000 visitors were welcomed across 5,000 different sites." The consequence of this communication effort is the increase in apprentice numbers and vocational school enrollments, and strong enthusiasm, as numbers at the CFA de Toulon (Grande Tourrache site) quickly surged.
HEAVYWEIGHT OF THE ECONOMY "Today, the CFA has nearly 1,000 registered apprentices at cruising speed and is about to embark on a major rehabilitation project of its premises to create a new training facility within 5 years. It is a long-term project due to its scale and the need to maintain activity during the works," Fabien Piersanti further specified.
Beyond the review of Les Coulisses du Bâtiment, for the president, it was also an opportunity to discuss human resources within companies and the BTP sector, a heavyweight of the economy and employment in Var. "According to the Banque de France, BTP contributes 14% of Var's GDP and 16% of the added value of its economy (this is much higher than the French average, which stands at 5% and 6% respectively). BTP in Var represents 34,500 active people, divided between 23,000 salaried jobs, 8,000 independent craftsmen, 2,500 temporary workers (FTE), and 1,000 apprentices.
Each job in the BTP generates 1.8 jobs upstream and downstream in the construction industry; we are talking about more than 96,000 direct and indirect jobs, or one in five jobs in Var."
Labor needs continue to exist despite an increasingly unfavorable economic outlook in the face of the age pyramid. Replacing those who are retiring remains a challenge, regardless of the economic climate. Indeed, unmet needs weigh on the growth of companies and the sector.
"Many companies are unable to grow due to a shortage of skilled labor. We therefore have an obligation to act," warned the president of the Fédération.
EMPLOYMENT AND PROMOTION OF TRADES There is a specialized BTP pathway for trainees from the École de la 2ème Chance in partnership with the UPV. A first cohort of 17 young people already took place at the beginning of the year in the Toulon metropolitan area with a very positive outcome, allowing the launch of a second cohort in Est Var. At the end of a 6-week program, including a two-week company internship and essential training before working on a construction site, these young people are hired by companies enrolled in the scheme and can continue their work-study training.
This is a new way of recruiting.
SOCIAL INTEGRATION CLAUSE Building and Public Works are important players in social integration through economic activity. The Fédération has always been mobilized to help member companies meet the social clause in public works contracts by creating adapted tools. For several years, the Fédération has supported an ETTI (temporary employment agency for integration) named BTP INTERIM, which is a real service to companies.
Furthermore, the integration of disadvantaged groups is in the DNA of BTP, which has always played an essential role in integrating people in difficulty as well as foreign populations. Thus, BTP contributes to the social fabric through work. It is proud of this and must claim it.
The professional branch is a highly labor-intensive activity. In this regard, a slogan from the FNTP had the merit of being clear: "Your construction sites are our jobs"!
Photo PRESSE AGENCE.