The World Floor Covering Association (WFCA) is committing $1 million toward solving the flooring industry's lack of qualified installers through the “We’re part of the Solution” campaign, unveiled today during an exclusive media event held in Chattanooga, Tenn.

The initiative, signed by industry leaders who will participate in the endeavor, also revealed the launch the Floor Covering Education Foundation (FCEF), an organization that will be dedicated to the recruitment, scholarship, placement, and retention of professional installers.

The campaign and organization are the result of the multi-phase study to quantify the scope and severity of the lack of installation professionals on the flooring industry's sustainability and growth commissioned by the Floor Covering Leadership Council (FCLC) by the Blackstone Group, the research firm found that the flooring installation industry will be short 3,000 – 6,000 installers per year over the next 10 years. However, a majority of the installers in the industry today are fifty-five or older, according to data from International Certified Floorcovering Installers (CFI), meaning that many are of the age to retire from the workforce.

Beginning Jan. 1, 2020, membership to the organization will be free to all primary members of the WFCA, which include specialty floor covering retailers, manufacturers and distributors. Other members who wish to access the WFCA education platform can do so with a $100 donation to FCEF or the Floor Covering Industry Foundation, which gets families back on their feet when battling catastrophic injuries, severe disabilities, or other life-altering medical crises.

For more information, visit www.wfca.org.