SKILLS
Tackling the skills gap in construction
It’s no secret that the construction industry and its associated trades are currently facing an increasingly large skills shortage. Daniel Ure from online PPE retailer Vizwear takes a look at what can be done to try and reverse the problem.
T
he industry has long suffered from a lack of skilled workers, making it more difficult than ever to hit deadlines due to the shrinking talent pool.
This is a big problem for the government, whose plans to build 300,000 new homes a year by the mid-2020s is becoming more of a pipe dream. In fact, according to the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), the lack of skilled construction workers is at its highest point since 2007. In order to get back on track, the industry needs to recruit over 200,000 more workers by 2020. Below, industry experts at Vizwear explore what problems the skills shortage in construction is causing for the government’s homebuilding targets — and what companies can do to help fill key positions. What’s causing the skills shortage?
20 October 2019
The main problem that’s contributing towards the skills shortage is that as a whole, the construction industry is still battling with an image problem.
“The industry needs to attract a fresh workforce to keep up with demands”, says Daniel Ure from online PPE retailer Vizwear. “But for many on the outside, the thought of working in construction still conjures up images of wolf-whistling workmen on building sites. To attract a new stream of workers, the industry needs to shake this negative image and show how the industry has developed.” It’s not just the difficulties of attracting new employees that are causing a skills shortage, though: it’s also due to the current workers. Data from the 2011 census showed that in the construction industry, one in five employees were aged over 55. This means that
by the early 2020s, when the industry should be hitting its homebuilding targets, most will have reached or be close to retirement age. An ageing workforce and an uphill recruitment battle are a combination that could have a detrimental effect on the industry. What steps can be taken to close the gap? The biggest barrier facing the construction industry is presenting itself as a desirable career path to potential employees. Although often seen in a bad light, there are fantastic opportunities to be had in construction, including mechanics, engineering and electronics.
There are a number of ways that construction companies can reach out to the right candidates and ensure them that a career in construction is exactly what they’re looking for.
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