With America's infrastructure and economy at a critical juncture, the people who create that infrastructure have launched a campaign to raise public awareness of the jobs they do.

You already may have seen the billboards, emblazoned with the faces of "heavy constructors." These are the faces of the people who make it possible for commuters to get to their jobs, and for food and other essential goods to be delivered where needed. They're the ones who don vests and hard hats, braving the elements as they crank up powerful pieces of equipment. They're laborers, operators, mechanics, truck drivers, masons, flaggers and crew supervisors - hard-working folks with good-paying jobs. They build our highways, streets, bridges, sewers and water systems.

"The awareness campaign is designed to explain what 'heavy construction' is," said HCAGKC Executive Director Ed DeSoignie. "More importantly, we want Kansas Citians to know that heavy construction provides living-wage paychecks and dignity to thousands of local workers and their families, including minorities and women, while making all of our lives better and safer."

Stimulus Money Creates Thousands of Good-Paying Local Jobs

Heavy construction is getting a welcome boost from American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which has earmarked $27 billion in funds for states to provide critical repairs to our nation's crumbling roads and bridges. That includes hundreds of millions of dollars for Missouri and Kansas.

According to the Federal Highway Administration, every $1 million of federal highway expenditure supports 30 jobs. That includes the construction jobs and spinoff jobs, such as the jobs created by companies that provide sheet steel for guard rails. Also included are the jobs that flourish when the construction workers and steel workers go out and spend the money they make in our communities.

Money from the federal stimulus program is making a positive impact in the Kansas City area. In 2008, 3,147 heavy construction workers logged about 5.67 million hours on the job. With pay and benefits averaging $40.65 an hour, their total compensation came to more than $2.3 billion.

The Heavy Constructors Association estimates that about 3,600 workers will put in more than 6.5 million hours and earn more than $2.6 billion on area heavy construction projects this year, up 15 percent from 2008. And those numbers don't include several thousand office support personnel and material and construction equipment suppliers and their employees.

For example, the recently awarded $82.3 million contract to improve U.S. 69 in Overland Park is expected to create and sustain more than 2,400 jobs over the life of the project.

Spreading the Word

Besides billboards, drivetime radio commercials about the campaign hit the airwaves in mid-June. "We are excited about this opportunity to tell about our family of heavy constructors," said DeSoignie. "The real stories are found in the lives and careers of the dedicated individuals who make about this key sector of our economy run."