A workforce survey conducted by the Associated General Contractors of America and Autodesk Construction shows labor shortages are affecting nearly all construction firms and could threaten the success of new federal investments in infrastructure and manufacturing, according to agc.org.
“Construction workforce shortages are severe and having a significant impact on construction firms of all types, all sizes and all labor arrangements,” said AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson. “These workforce shortages are compounding the challenges firms are having with supply chain disruptions that are inflating the cost of construction materials and making delivery schedules and product availability uncertain.”
Simonson noted 93% percent of construction firms report they have open positions they are trying to fill. Of those firms, 91% are having trouble filling at least some of those positions, particularly among the craft workforce performing much of the on-site construction work. Seventy-seven percent of firms said available candidates lack the skills needed to work in construction or cannot pass a drug test.
Additionally, 82% of firms report projects have been delayed because of supply chain challenges, and 66% have projects that have been delayed because of labor shortages. Eighty-six percent of firms have raised base pay rates for their workers while 70% have passed along rising materials costs to project owners during the past year. Fifty-eight percent of respondents report owners cancelled, postponed or scaled back projects because of increasing costs, and one-third of firms report projects were affected because of lengthening or uncertain completion times.
Aside from raising wages to address the labor shortage, 45% of companies are providing incentives and bonuses, and 24% have improved their benefits packages. Fifty-one percent of respondents report they have engaged with career-building programs such as high school, collegiate or technical school construction programs—up from 37% in the 2021 survey. Companies also are boosting investment in training programs and emphasizing the importance of digital technology skills.
Association officials said public leaders have a vested interest in ensuring new workers are better prepared for high-paying construction careers, urging them to invest in career and technical education and allow more workers to lawfully enter the U.S. The federal government’s new infrastructure funding and more recent investments in semiconductor factories and energy infrastructure projects will be affected if there are not enough workers to keep up with demand.
AGC and Autodesk conducted the survey in late July and early August. Nearly 1,300 firms completed the survey from a broad cross-section of the construction industry.
