Tag: worker shortage: Page 4

Business

Wages for construction and other skilled trades are on the rise

Wages for skilled tradesmen in the construction and mining as well as those in logging and manufacturing are on the rise, according to a new report from the Economist. Citing data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the report says that hourly wages have grown at an annual rate of around 2 percent for the last […]

June 4, 2014

Business

Minnesota construction firms likely need to boost pay, reduce expectations to find enough workers to meet demand

Construction is Minnesota’s fastest growing industry, and as demand continues to pile up, construction firms there are having a hard time finding enough skilled workers. And one labor analyst suggests they might need to make some serious changes to fill those vacancies. According to a report from Minnesota Public Radio, the skilled trades in Minnesota […]

May 27, 2014

Business

Pittsburgh contractors say their problem is finding work, not workers… for now

Contractors in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania say it’s not a skilled worker shortage that’s causing them problems. It’s a shortage of construction jobs that’s to blame for a lack of production. In the last year, construction firms across the country have seen work pile up while they struggle to find workers skilled enough to meet demand. But […]

May 14, 2014

Business

Colorado contractors say “huge shortage of tradesmen” is severely impacting business

Contractors in Colorado say that while there is plenty of work to go around, they are falling behind on jobs they have while unable to take on new jobs due to a serious shortage of skilled workers in the state. Doug Dohn of Dohn Construction in Fort Collins told the Coloradoan that none of his current […]

May 7, 2014

Business

Another worker shortage compounded by the energy boom could delay construction of $1.3 billion Dallas hospital

Construction officials with a Dallas area hospital say their project is losing workers and bidders to stiff competition from the oil and gas industry as well as higher paying construction jobs elsewhere in the state. “Houston and West Texas are taking labor away from many of our projects,” Lou Saksen, senior vice president over the $1.3 […]

April 24, 2014

Business

Obama, Biden announce $600 million initiative to close skills gap through job training and apprenticeships

Today, President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden announced a $600 million initiative that seeks to equip more workers with the skills needed to fill thousands of open but specialized jobs. The initiative will be funded by existing Labor Department funds. The first part of the initiative is $500 million in competitive grants intended […]

April 16, 2014

Business

Alabama backs dual enrollment for high school students to boost skilled workforce

Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley recently detailed a plan he hopes will increase the number of skilled workers in the state by allowing high school students to learn a trade before they graduate. During an Alabama Associated General Contractors of America meeting outside Birmingham, Bentley said the state needs more skilled workers, according to a report […]

April 7, 2014

Business

Divergence of construction spending and employment could point to “fundamental change” in the industry

Recently, the folks at Business Insider put together a nicely done and comprehensive article on the skilled labor shortage affecting the construction industry and the impact it’s having on homebuilding. There wasn’t much new news to be found for those of us who follow these stories on a regular basis. Many of the experienced and […]

March 17, 2014

Business

Six-week Massachusetts construction crash course prepares low income, minority workers for the industry

As the U.S. construction industry continues to explore ways to battle the current skilled worker shortage, a training program in Massachusetts is introducing the industry to many folks who had never previously considered it. According to the Daily Hampshire Gazette, the city of Holyoke is seeing an influx of construction projects as of late including a […]

February 24, 2014

Business

Ohio Gov. Kasich expands vocational education to middle schools

Previewing what he would discuss as part of his State of the State address Monday night, Ohio Gov. John Kasich said he has done away with a state rule that restricted vocational education to only students in the ninth through 12th grades. According to a report from the Columbus Dispatch, Kasich said vocational education has […]

February 23, 2014

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More funding, charter schools part of AGC’s plan to thwart construction’s skilled worker shortage

During an event at the Washburn Institute of Technology in Topeka, Kansas, the Associated General Contractors of America unveiled its plan to put an end to the skilled worker shortage facing the construction industry. The plan consists of several recommendations with the goal of drawing more young people into the construction industry. In September the association released […]

February 14, 2014

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Maryland shadow program works to draw high school students to construction training

Through the end of this month a vocational school in Fredrick, Maryland is offering students the opportunity to get a taste of the industry by shadowing its construction training program. The Fredrick County Career and Technology Center (CTC) is the home of several construction technology programs. Each year, the CTC gives its construction students hands-on […]

February 12, 2014