There are certain captains of this industry who truly get what's happening with the workforce and what needs to be done moving forward.
I was lucky enough to be able to visit with Chamberlin Roofing and Waterproofing President and CEO John Kafka. He's not only running one of the companies that invests in its workforce, but he's getting involved in the C3 movement to help fix the problems across the industry.
“To look at where we are now, you need to step back and look at where we were 30 years ago. The fact is, we are not in a much different situation in terms of wages and working conditions than we were 30 years ago,” Kafka said. He pointed to the example of someone who does caulking work who makes the exact same amount now that they did decades ago: around 16 to 18 dollars an hour. “Picture yourself doing extremely difficult work, missing work as a result of weather conditions – so maybe I can’t get 40 hours in, but making the same amount of money today that you were making in 1980,” Kafka said.
In the 7½ minute video below, Kafka and I talk about the challenges of today and the solutions that are starting to take root in Houston. Watch and let us know what you think in the comments section.
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