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Photo: Bill Klotz/Special to Finance & Commerce / During a conference call Tuesday, Associated General Contractors of America officials called for the federal government to double funding for construction-related training programs, and to take action on immigration reform to address workforce needs, among other recommendations. This July photo shows work being done on Hennepin Avenue in downtown Minneapolis.
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By Brian Johnson
Staff Writer
A shortage of craft workers continues to bedevil the nation’s construction industry, and the problem is especially acute in Minnesota, where more than nine of 10 contractors report difficulty filling positions.
So says a survey released Tuesday by the Associated General Contractors of America, which cautions that the industry’s struggle to bring new workers into the fold could have dire consequences for the broader economy.
During a conference call Tuesday, AGC officials called for the federal government to double funding for construction-related training programs, and to take action on immigration reform to address workforce needs, among other recommendations.
“The workforce shortage remains the single most significant threat to the success of the construction industry,” AGC of America CEO Stephen Sandherr said during the conference call. “The overwhelming majority of construction firms are having a hard time finding qualified workers, particularly hourly craft professionals, to hire.”
Roughly 2,000 construction companies responded to the AGC survey, which was conducted this summer. Eighty percent of survey respondents said they are having a hard time filling craft worker positions.
The survey broke the numbers down with specific results from 22 states, including Minnesota. In Minnesota, 92 percent report difficulty finding craft workers. Only Arizona (95 percent) and South Dakota (100 percent) reported higher percentages.
Tim Worke, CEO of AGC of Minnesota, said the numbers are not surprising. Some contractors are turning to technology and automation to compensate for the lack of skilled crafts people, Worke said.
Though some particular trades may not feel the pinch as much as others, Worke said the worker shortage has ripple effects throughout the industry.
“If you are a general contractor, you have a responsibility for managing all the trades on the job site. And if the operating engineers have a worker shortage and you can’t get a crane operator on your job site, guess what? You are not hanging iron,” Worke said.
Worke echoed the call for comprehensive immigration reform.
“We are losing people and we are not keeping up with our workforce needs from our own population, so we have a need to import workforce. We need people in our state, and the only people that are available to come into the state are immigrants, largely,” Worke said.
Ken Simonson, AGC’s chief economist, said Minnesota’s low unemployment rate and tight overall labor market, combined with a robust construction economy, explain in part why Minnesota’s workforce shortage is more severe than the national average.
“Even though it is not the fastest-growing state in terms of the economy, it has been a very tight labor market there,” Simonson said. “Contractors are feeling competition from other kinds of employers. It’s also been a pretty active construction market.”
The survey results indicate there’s “a lot of confidence in the Minnesota construction market,” but the state faces “a huge challenge in finding the workers to do the work they know is out there,” Simonson added.
Among the key takeaways from the Minnesota survey:
AGC of America represents more than 26,000 firms, including roughly 6,500 general contractors and 9,000 specialty-contracting firms, according to its website. More than 10,500 service providers and suppliers are also associated with the association.
A shortage of craft workers continues to bedevil the nation’s construction industry, and the problem is especially acute in Minnesota, where more than nine of 10 contractors report difficulty filling positions.
So says a survey released Tuesday by the Associated General Contractors of America, which cautions that the industry’s struggle to bring new workers into the fold could have dire consequences for the broader economy.
During a conference call Tuesday, AGC officials called for the federal government to double funding for construction-related training programs, and to take action on immigration reform to address workforce needs, among other recommendations.
“The workforce shortage remains the single most significant threat to the success of the construction industry,” AGC of America CEO Stephen Sandherr said during the conference call. “The overwhelming majority of construction firms are having a hard time finding qualified workers, particularly hourly craft professionals, to hire.”
Roughly 2,000 construction companies responded to the AGC survey, which was conducted this summer. Eighty percent of survey respondents said they are having a hard time filling craft worker positions.
The survey broke the numbers down with specific results from 22 states, including Minnesota. In Minnesota, 92 percent report difficulty finding craft workers. Only Arizona (95 percent) and South Dakota (100 percent) reported higher percentages.
Tim Worke, CEO of AGC of Minnesota, said the numbers are not surprising. Some contractors are turning to technology and automation to compensate for the lack of skilled crafts people, Worke said.
Though some particular trades may not feel the pinch as much as others, Worke said the worker shortage has ripple effects throughout the industry.
“If you are a general contractor, you have a responsibility for managing all the trades on the job site. And if the operating engineers have a worker shortage and you can’t get a crane operator on your job site, guess what? You are not hanging iron,” Worke said.
Worke echoed the call for comprehensive immigration reform.
“We are losing people and we are not keeping up with our workforce needs from our own population, so we have a need to import workforce. We need people in our state, and the only people that are available to come into the state are immigrants, largely,” Worke said.
Ken Simonson, AGC’s chief economist, said Minnesota’s low unemployment rate and tight overall labor market, combined with a robust construction economy, explain in part why Minnesota’s workforce shortage is more severe than the national average.
“Even though it is not the fastest-growing state in terms of the economy, it has been a very tight labor market there,” Simonson said. “Contractors are feeling competition from other kinds of employers. It’s also been a pretty active construction market.”
The survey results indicate there’s “a lot of confidence in the Minnesota construction market,” but the state faces “a huge challenge in finding the workers to do the work they know is out there,” Simonson added.
Among the key takeaways from the Minnesota survey:
- While 92 percent of respondents report having a hard time finding craft workers, 62 percent struggle to fill salaried positions;
- Seventy-eight percent said it’s more difficult to find concrete workers compared to a year ago. Carpenters (73 percent), pipe layers (71 percent), laborers (71 percent) and equipment operators (61 percent) are also especially hard to come by.
- The problem isn’t likely to go away anytime soon. Eighty-eight percent predict it will “become harder” (46 percent) or “continue to be hard” (42 percent) to find available hourly craft workers in the coming 12 months.
- Fifty-four percent of firms said they have increased base pay rates for hourly craft workers in the past year because of difficulty filling positions, and 58 percent said they have provided bonuses or incentives.
- Half of the respondents said costs have been higher than expected and 54 percent said projects have taken longer than expected because of “staffing challenges.”
AGC of America represents more than 26,000 firms, including roughly 6,500 general contractors and 9,000 specialty-contracting firms, according to its website. More than 10,500 service providers and suppliers are also associated with the association.
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