LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — In a recent Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) survey, 58% of respondents reported a “severe” or “very severe” labor shortage.
According to the survey, the construction industry must hire half a million workers on top of their standard hiring pace to be fully staffed by the end of 2024.
"If you look and talk to the majority of our contractors, they're all short on staff,” said Bill Roachell, president of ABC’s Arkansas chapter. “Whenever you talk to them, they're trying to find that next worker."
Roachell said he thinks the shortage is due to the industry not spreading the word about opportunities in this field.
His company is trying to do just that through homeschool programs and apprenticeships, hoping to fill those roles eventually.
"[The apprenticeship is] a four-year program,” Roachell said.“After they finish the four years, they can then test for their journeyman's exam. After they’ve passed their journeys exam, they then go into a leadership position with their company."
Tyler Douglas is a plumber and project coordinator who got his start through the program. He first tried attending college and working at Starbucks, but neither was suitable for him.
Douglas said there's a different fit for everyone, but he'd highly recommend at least looking at construction.
"Everybody thinks it's hard work, hard sweat,” Douglas said. “It is hard work and hard sweat, but there's more than just digging ditches and working... you have plumbers, carpenters, electricians."
Roachell emphasized that more opportunities are available in construction than people might think, especially for young people.
"Just see what opportunities are available in the construction industry,” Roachell said. “And I think they'll be shocked."
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