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Students work on a truck engine. (Nick Collura)

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Funding dedicated to training diesel technicians across four facilities in Massachusetts is included in about issued by Gov. Maura Healey.

The grants are coming from the state’s Career Technical Initiative program, which provides funds to increase skilled labor in the state’s construction/skilled trades and manufacturing sectors.

“The CTI program opens doors for adult learners by providing the hands-on training they need to step into high-demand careers in construction, the trades and manufacturing,” Healey said Aug. 5. “With some of the best public Career Technical Education schools in the country and strong employer partnerships, Massachusetts is positioned to prepare our residents for rewarding, lifelong careers.”

The grants will be allocated across 23 school districts to train 2,490 adult learners. Specific to diesel technicians, the grants allocated include:

• $2.2 million for the Franklin County Technical School in Turners Falls to train 216 students in auto tech, building maintenance, carpentry, electrical, horticulture, plumbing and welding. One of the partner companies is Harrison Diesel Solutions, which serves owner-operators and large trucking fleets.
• $1.3 million for the Southern Worcester County Regional Vocational Technical School District in Charlton to train 130 students in the fields of diesel mechanics, auto collision, auto tech, building/property maintenance, culinary arts, electricians, HVAC, manufacturing and welding jobs. The school will partner with the Advantage Truck Group, which said it is the largest Daimler Truck North America dealer network in New England.
• $419,996 for the Upper Cape Cod Regional Technical School in Bourne to fund training for 40 participants in diesel tech and welding jobs. Corporate partners include P.A. Landers Inc., which owns a fleet of snowplow and ice control trucks, and Ryder Transportation Services.
• $399,996 for the City of Worcester and Worcester Public Schools to train 40 people for diesel tech positions. Partners include The Pete Store, City of Leominster Department of Public Works and the Advantage Truck Group and Bay Path Regional Vocational Technical High School.

“These awards are a key part of our agenda to build a job-ready workforce for today and the future,” said Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll. “By tapping into our world-class education system and investing in targeted job training, we’re growing the talent pipeline that employers across Massachusetts depend on to compete and thrive.”

These state grant awards coincided with the release of a study by the American Transportation Research Institute about concerns in the trucking industry over decreasing numbers of diesel technicians in a key transportation sector that depends on them.

“The lack of qualified diesel technicians is a growing problem for all industries that operate heavy-duty equipment. This issue is particularly acute in trucking, where 65.5% of shops were understaffed in 2025 and 19.3% of positions were unfilled on average,” ATRI said in its 61-page report titled “Addressing the Shortage of Qualified Diesel Technicians,” which was authored by ATRI Senior Vice President Dan Murray and Senior Research Associate Alex Leslie.

Diesel service technicians and mechanics inspect and repair any vehicle with a diesel engine, especially heavy trucks. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average salary of a diesel technician last year was $60,640 annually.