Migrant construction workers make up a significant portion of the workforce in many countries and play a crucial role in alleviating the skilled labor shortage. Although vocational education and training (VET) is essential for equipping these workers with the skills needed to enhance workforce quality and bridge the skills gap, their intentions to attend VET (IAVET) remain relatively low. Drawing on the theory of planned behavior (TPB), this study investigates the antecedents of IAVET among migrant construction workers and explores the moderating role of work pressure. A questionnaire survey was conducted among 547 construction workers in China, followed by exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, and structural equation modeling. The results show that social support has a significant positive correlation with IAVET. Moreover, the three planned behavioral factors mediate the relationship between social support and IAVET, with the mediating effects varying depending on the level of work pressure experienced by workers. Notably, subjective norms (SN) emerge as the strongest mediator, while work pressure (WP) significantly moderates both the direct and indirect pathways, highlighting their critical roles in shaping VET participation intentions. These findings provide valuable insights into the mechanisms through which social support influences migrant construction workers’ IAVET, offering practical implications for improving workforce skills and addressing the skilled labor shortage in the construction sector and similar industries worldwide. Overall, the study strengthens the theoretical explanatory power of the extended TPB framework and offers actionable guidance for policymakers and construction enterprises to enhance migrant workers’ engagement in VET. © 2025 by the authors.
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