Report: Workforce shortages reach pre-pandemic levels

By |  September 6, 2021

Construction firms throughout the country don’t see an imminent end to these problems, either.

Among respondents, 26 percent expect it will take longer than six months for revenue to match or exceed levels from a year earlier. Seventeen percent are unsure when to expect a return to previous demand levels.

In the Northeast, 40 percent of respondents expect it will take longer than six months for business to return to normal. That percentage is larger than that of the South (34 percent), West (22 percent) and Midwest (12 percent).

Contractors also report experiencing as much difficulty filling positions now as they did before the pandemic, with 89 percent of firms saying they are struggling to fill hourly craft positions and 86 percent struggling to fill salaried positions.

AGC says there are two main reasons so many firms are having these issues. The first is that available candidates are not qualified to work in the industry due to lack of skills or the inability to pass a drug test, among other issues. The second is that unemployment insurance supplements are keeping workers at home.

To combat these issues, nearly one-third of firms increased their training and professional development. Additionally, 73 percent of firms increased base pay rates in the past year, and just over one-third also started providing hiring bonuses or incentives in the last 12 months.

Thirty-seven percent of firms report engaging with career-building programs at the high school, collegiate or career and technical level, and about one-quarter are partnering with government workforce development or unemployment agencies, or use software to track job applications, AGC says.

An increased use of technology is also a key part of these firms becoming more efficient operators. Fifty-seven percent say the rate of technology adoption at their firm increased over the last 12 months, with 60 percent saying they anticipate that rate to increase in the next year.

“Challenges often drive resolve, and we started to see this acutely in the construction industry last year,” says Allison Scott, director of construction thought leadership and customer marketing with Autodesk. “The continued investments in hiring, training and technology highlighted in this year’s study show that even while dealing with ongoing challenges nearly two years into the pandemic, the industry remains committed to building better with a resilient workforce.”

Call to action

AGC officials call on Washington leaders to take steps to help address these challenging market conditions and labor shortages. The association continues its call on the House to quickly pass the $1 trillion infrastructure bill, urging the Biden administration and Congress to work together to boost investments in career and technical education.

“The federal government currently spends only one dollar on career training for every six it puts into college prep, despite the fact only one in three jobs requires a college degree,” says Stephen Sandherr, AGC’s CEO. “Boosting federal investments in career and technical education will help attract and prepare more people into high-paying careers in construction.”

Featured photo: shotbydave/E+/Getty Images

Jack Kopanski

About the Author:

Jack Kopanski is the Managing Editor of Pit & Quarry and Editor-in-Chief of Portable Plants. Kopanski can be reached at 216-706-3756 or jkopanski@northcoastmedia.net.

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