Shortage of Construction Workers? What Shortage?

You might not know it but there is a shortage of skilled craftspeople in the industry.  Today, with the 24% unemployment across the industry, probably not; however, look at these figures.  In its updated projections, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) indicates that there will be 1,300,000 new construction jobs created in the construction industry between today and 2018.  That represents a 19% growth rate and is the largest increase in the Goods producing sector in this country.  That represents almost 163,000 new construction jobs a year for the next 8 years.

With the economy in recession and with what is beginning to look like a “long tail” on this recession, that demand will probably not be evident until late 2011 or early 2012 and then the rate will increase at a greater rate.  In order to meet that demand, we need to be doing something about it today.  Educating and training tomorrow’s workforce needs planning, recruiting and some image improvement for certain.

Every person who will be working for you in 2015 (or 2020) is in school or in the workforce.  If they are in school, then you have to be talking to them now to show them that there is a viable career for them in the construction industry tomorrow.  Not much of this type of recruiting is going on right now but it needs to be.
 
What are you doing to recruit tomorrow’s workforce?