If you can operate an excavator, wheel loader, backhoe, crane or other types of equipment, or if you simply have the get up and get it done attitude and want to learn a new trade, America needs you.
Construction companies around the country are desperately trying to find new workers, as projects remain plenty, but the laborers are few.
That's because the nation is facing a labor shortage, in large part because of the early response to the pandemic forced people off job sites and into their homes.
Whether or not the dramatic response to the COVID-19 virus was necessary, the fact remains, it caused a drop in the labor force, in large part because COVID-19 stimulus money made it more profitable for some to simply stay home and receive a government check each month than going off to work.
Now with the pandemic apparently in our past, certain sectors of the economy are finding it tough to regain its footing, in part because many Americans, with help from the government, are putting money into the housing market.
New home construction is surging, in part because more people are working from home. According to Associated Builders and Contractors, construction businesses will need to hire a million more workers over the next two years in order to keep up.
According to the Labor Department, the construction lost about a million workers when the construction industry shut down early in the pandemic. Soon after, the sector was determined essential, but not everyone came back to work. The industry got back nearly 80% of its workforce since then. However, getting the remaining 20% back into excavators and backhoes isn't going to be enough.
Paul Nyznyk, Operations Manager at Hayes Construction Services in Buffalo, New York says the hiring problem is nothing new.
"It's always been a challenge getting people hired. We were able to bring everyone back after the pandemic shut operations down for a few weeks," Nyznyk said.
Some construction companies jacked wages up to lure people through the door. Some companies raised entry level pay by as much as 50% to remain competitive. Of course, add to the equation the high price of material, and you have a bottomline increase that is passed onto the consumer.
If you are a construction company and need parts for your machines, be sure to give ConEquip Parts a call.
