Compass Datacenters CEO says blue-collar labor shortage limits data center growth

Compass Datacenters CEO Chris Crosby says the data center industry faces a significant shortage of skilled blue-collar workers, a constraint he argues is limiting the sector's expansion. Crosby told Fox News Digital that the industry requires a large workforce of electricians, mechanics, technicians, and construction workers to keep infrastructure running, and that the labor pool is insufficient to meet current demand.

Crosby criticized past cultural attitudes that favored four-year degrees over vocational training, stating that the "war on blue-collar jobs" has ended. He emphasized that these roles are essential to the digital economy and deserve serious consideration. "I am tired of the elitism that this doesn't create jobs," Crosby said, pointing to the employees at Compass’s Red Oak campus in Texas and the construction crews who built it. He noted that 900 people currently work at the campus, supported by thousands of construction workers who have been on site for more than five years.

The Red Oak campus, located about 20 miles south of Dallas, began development in 2019. The site now comprises 10 data center buildings totaling approximately 2.6 million square feet, along with a Schneider Electric manufacturing facility and a technical college training program. Crosby stated that more than 600 people work full time at the campus, with an additional 300 employed at Schneider Electric. The ongoing construction requires a wide range of skilled tradespeople, including carpenters, welders, and concrete workers. "We can’t get enough people into this career," Crosby said, citing the high demand for electricians and mechanical contractors.

The labor demand extends beyond construction sites to factories producing data center components. Crosby said Compass and its partners have created more than 7,000 permanent factory jobs nationwide. To address the workforce gap, Compass partnered with Texas State Technical College to build a $12.6 million training facility at the Red Oak campus. This facility supports the MEI Pathways program, which stands for Mechanical, Electrical and IT Pathways. The program is designed to prepare individuals for careers in the broader data center industry rather than exclusively for Compass. It is open to anyone interested in the field and does not require prior qualifications.

Crosby described the initial step into these careers as the primary challenge for many potential employees. He argued that building this workforce will become increasingly important as data centers continue to expand. He maintained that these facilities drive economic activity by generating jobs and tax revenue for the communities where they are located. "Data centers are where the economic engine is going to be going forward," Crosby said, predicting massive amounts of jobs and tax revenue growth in the sector.