Lifting Futures is the GE Aerospace Foundation’s flagship workforce skills program, designed to help train the advanced manufacturing workforce needed across the aviation industry.
Lifting Futures is a philanthropic effort that aims to train 10,000 workers with the skills needed to help support growing demand across the aerospace and manufacturing industries by 2030.
The workforce challenge is particularly acute in aviation, driven by waves of coming retirements and four-times as many new workers entering aviation who need advanced skills training compared to manufacturing overall, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data.
Our 5 initial communities demonstrate strong potential, existing momentum, and an ability to scale impact quickly with additional classrooms, equipment, and resources to increase graduation and job placement.
The advanced manufacturing industry is growing rapidly, but the supply of skilled workers isn’t keeping up. Labor gaps are widening as retirements accelerate and training opportunities remain limited.
According to a prior GE Aerospace | Morning Consult workforce survey, almost a third of workers say adequate skills training has been the biggest factor in their success. When skill-building opportunities are made more accessible, affordable, and sustainable, employers can fill roles faster while boosting retention, loyalty, and long-term resilience. According to the same survey, 95% of workers say they would stay in manufacturing if they had the right skills.
The five communities selected for the initial round of Lifting Futures grants have strong labor demand, a pipeline of potential new workers, and capable partner training institutions. The GE Aerospace Foundation will convene education, industry, and government leaders to collaboratively shape the programs for their community, aiming to provide the first round of grants by the end of 2026.
Lifting Futures builds on GE Aerospace and the GE Aerospace Foundation’s lessons learned from supporting local skills training programs, building new workforce skills partnerships, and reaching into new communities.
The program is designed to help close the advanced manufacturing labor gap, strengthen communities, and generate new knowledge about how to secure the future of advanced manufacturing. Program investments will help increase access to community-based skills training and certification and will emphasize:
- Efforts to reduce barriers to entry for training institutions and programs.
- Capacity expansion initiatives, including additional classrooms and equipment, that enable training programs to enroll more students.
- Activities to increase the resources and services students need to increase graduation and job placement rates from training programs.
Latest
Since 2024, GE Aerospace and its Foundation have supported over 20 workforce programs, helping nearly 10,000 individuals pursue fulfilling careers in advanced manufacturing.
GE Aerospace has a long history of building a skilled workforce – both internally and through community-based programming.
Since becoming a standalone company in 2024, GE Aerospace and its Foundation have supported more than 20 workforce programs, helping nearly 10,000 individuals pursue fulfilling careers in advanced manufacturing. Within GE Aerospace, current and future employees are trained through apprenticeships and other programs such as the Lafayette, Indiana, FAA powerplant apprenticeship, the Rutland, Vermont, machinists toolmaker apprenticeship, and the West Jefferson, North Carolina, advanced machining program.
Learn more about how GE Aerospace is supporting worker training efforts:
Since GE Aerospace became a standalone company, GE Aerospace Foundation has supported more than 20 workforce programs, reaching nearly 10,000 individuals. In addition, GE Aerospace has a long history of training current and future employees with apprenticeships and other training programs, including 10 years of machining in West Jefferson, NC, and over 50 years of powerplant apprenticeships at Rutland, VT. In 2025, about 3,000 GE Aerospace workers were engaged in apprenticeships and other training programs.
FHI 360 is a global organization that mobilizes research, resources and relationships so people everywhere have access to the opportunities they need to lead full and healthy lives. For more than 50 years, FHI 360 has worked in partnership with employers to expand economic opportunity through access to training, certification, and supportive resources to drive economic growth and address critical workforce shortages. FHI 360 serves as the global implementing partner for Lifting Futures.
