The Shrinking Construction Workforce

On today’s show we are talking about the shortage of construction workers that has been widely reported.  

From our vantage point, we are seeing a number of contradictory facts. There is a shortage of workers in many of the trades. At the same time, we know of workers who are sitting at home right now, looking for work. We know this because we are being continually solicited for work by subtrades.

We also know of architects and consulting engineers who are being laid off because of a lack of work in some markets.

It’s a strange dichotomy. There is no question that the
industry has experienced a slowdown of new projects after a few years of elevated investment. However, we believe this situation is temporary. The problem is demographics. People are retiring out of the construction trades, faster than new young people are entering the trades.

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Host: Victor Menasce

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