Excerpts on Vocational Education from the President's Statement on Combating Construction Inflation and Meeting Future Construction Needs.

America's $100 billion construction industry with its 3 million workers does not need harassment, unwarranted interference, or political denounciation; it does need better access to mortgage money, less costly materials at more stable prices, an end to archaic regulations that hamper productivity, more dynamic management, and--most of all--more trained workers. The actions outlined in this statement, together with the legislation to be submitted to the Congress by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, are designed to meet those industry needs. Construction costs are not the "fault" of any one group; they are the result of a system that urgently needs reform and modernization. We must take care, in making those reforms, to treat fundamentals rather than symptoms, essentially to bring the supply and demand of labor, money and materials into better balance. That is the only constructive way to stop the spiral of construction costs. In so doing, we can simultaneously meet two of the Nation's most pressing needs: the need to open up new job opportunities for millions of working men and women, and the need to provide adequate shelter for everyone. (Author)