Construction labor shortage to worsen, builders say

A majority of construction firms are downbeat on the future of the industry’s labor shortage as demand for new construction keeps growing, according to a survey released by Autodesk and the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC).

The study found that 81% of firms said it will continue to be hard, or get harder, to find hourly craft workers this year. These positions represent the bulk of the construction workforce.

Of the more than 2,500 survey respondents, 80% are finding it difficult to fill hourly craft positions. All of the country’s four regions have a severe shortage in craft workers. In the West and South, 81% of contractors reported a hard time filling hourly craft positions. The share was 80% in the Midwest and 77% in the Northeast.

“Labor shortages in the construction industry remain significant and widespread,” said Ken Simonson, AGC’s chief economist. “The best way to encourage continued economic growth, make it easier to rebuild aging infrastructure, and place more young adults into high-paying careers is to address construction workforce shortages.”

AGC said that labor shortages come as demand for construction continues to grow. Employment in the industry expanded in July from the year-ago period in 281 out of 358 metro areas tracked by the association.

“With a rise in the share of firms having trouble finding skilled craft workers, it’s evident that we need to reskill the future workforce,” said Sarah Hodges, senior director of the construction business line at Autodesk. “Technology can help bridge this gap, and more firms are bringing training in-house to implement digital strategies such as building information modeling, or BIM, to ease staffing challenges and train the next generation of industry professionals.”