In the period of the Great Recession and since the plummeting housing market that arrived with it, over 2.3 million construction workers left their positions. With urbanization and the necessity of new homes and buildings in urbanized areas, the demand for labor is also on the rise. Builders and construction companies are unable to meet the demand of wider demographics flocking to cities and urbanized areas. How the construction industry sees this challenge and how can the labor shortage in construction be resolved.
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Labor Shortage Equals Less Productivity in Construction
Contractors can’t meet the growing demand for buildings and housing in urbanized areas and big cities as the industry are suffering from a shortage of labor. Some of the 2.3 million workers who left job positions in the industry of construction left for early retirement, some were laid off and others were seeking more profitable and prominent professions. The construction industry is still struggling with meeting the demand for new housing projects, which is how the shortage in labor becomes a challenge for the industry. Urbanization would be far more efficient and the work done on construction projects would be more productive with a satisfying number of workers in the sector of construction. However, since the issue is still an active manner and construction needs to move forward and adapt to the situation, new solutions are emerging.
Almost Half Million Positions Available in Construction
According to the United States Labor Bureau, there are over 430,000 vacant job positions in the industry of construction. This case alone shows how progressive is the demand for labor in the industry of construction. Since the positions remain vacant, some construction companies are invested in technology with the hope to meet the demand for new housing projects. The most logical solution seems to be the use of robotics and robots, drones and autonomous heavy equipment. The use of these emerging technologies should accelerate productivity in construction and tackle the problem of shortages in labor.
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