A new survey by contractors reveals difficulties faced by builders, and subsequent delays to projects.
An astonishing 94 percent of construction firms in the U.S. are struggling to hire workers, according to a new survey from the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) and HR technology firm Arcoro.
The survey comes after Vice President Kamala Harris announced her pledge to build 3 million homes in four years if she wins the 2024 Presidential Election, according to The Associated Press.
It reveals that construction projects are experiencing delays due to the limited workforce, and points to a lack of investment in construction workforce education and investment as a root cause of the issue.
Newsweek spoke with Kenneth D. Simonson, the chief economist for the AGC. « AGC has conducted this survey for 12 years », he explained in an email. « Before the pandemic and since the industry began to recover in 2021, very high percentages of firms have reported difficulty filling nearly all types of hourly craft positions along with construction-focused salaried positions such as project managers and estimators. »
« But it was striking that the percent reporting difficulty increased this year, even as job openings, hires, and wage increases have tapered off in the overall private sector according to Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data. »
The survey, which included nearly 1,500 firms from a broad cross-section of the construction industry, found that 94 percent of contractors have open positions, and among those, 94 percent are having difficulty filling at least some of those roles.
This shortage is most acute among the craft workforce, which performs the bulk of on-site construction work. Nearly one in three contractors reported having at least 11 unfilled craft positions as of June 30.
« Workforce shortages have been a long-standing concern, and it is not surprising that it is again the biggest source of project delays », Simonson said.
