Labor Shortages are Prompting Firms to Increase Pay and Become More Efficient but Threaten to Slow Economic Growth over the Long-Term Officials Warn as they Call for New Workforce Measures
Two-thirds of construction firms report they are having a hard time filling hourly craft positions that represent the bulk of the construction workforce, according to the results of an industry-wide survey released today by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials said that many firms are changing the way they pay and operate to cope, but warned that labor shortages could undermine broader economic growth and called for new workforce measures to improve the pipeline for recruiting and training new craft workers.
“With the construction industry in most of the country now several years into a recovery, many firms have gone from worrying about not having enough work to not having enough workers,” said Stephen Sandherr, chief executive officer for the Associated General Contractors. “These shortages have the potential to undermine broader economic growth by forcing contractors to slow scheduled work or choose not to bid on projects, thereby inflating the cost of construction.”
Of the 1,459 survey respondents, 69 percent said they are having difficulty filling hourly craft positions, Sandherr noted. Craft worker shortages are the most severe in the Midwest, where 77 percent of contractors are having a hard time filling those positions. The region is followed by the South where 74 percent of contractors are having a hard time finding craft workers, 71 percent in the West and 57 percent in the South.
Click to read the full release on the ACG of America website.