According to research by Seattle-based Qualtrics, 75% of unvaccinated construction workers say they could quit their job when vaccine mandates go into effect. Meanwhile, at least half of those survey say vaccine discussions at work get heated.
The survey, which polled more than 1,300 people in different industries throughout the U.S., indicates enforcing vaccine mandates could be a big problem in the construction industry, which is already struggling to fill skilled positions.
Vaccination rates for construction workers have consistently tracked below 60% since July, according to Silver Spring, Maryland-based CPWR, the Center for Construction Research and Training, a construction safety research group. Most other industries have higher vaccinations rates with eight out of 10 workers having been inoculated.
Many construction companies are losing some of its workers, who opt to take employment with smaller companies that employ less than 100 workers. For now, vaccination requirements are for companies who employ 100 or more workers.
While that mandate and others, including one aimed at all federal contractors, are currently being challenged in court, the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday refused to block a New York State vaccine mandate for health workers. Ultimately, legal experts expect the outstanding challenges to vaccine mandates for other workers to end up before the nation’s highest court as well.
But whether the mandates are upheld or not, others say given the nature of the job market in construction right now, unvaccinated workers often have the upper hand over employers who are struggling to satisfy both sides of the vaccine issue.
