There seems to be much hand wringing over the fact that not enough people want to work construction these days:
About two-thirds of the contractors who are struggling with the labor shortages gripping the construction industry say it has become a challenge to finish jobs on time, according to a new survey.
More than one-third of contractors said they are being forced to turn work down and 58% said they are putting in higher bids, said the survey sponsored by USG Corp. and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Three-quarters of those who said they are having difficulty finding skilled labor said they are simply asking their employees to work harder.
“Basically they’re just making people work harder as a way to cope,” said Steve Jones, senior director of Dodge Data & Analytics, which was the research partner of USG and the Chamber on the project.
If you have a shortage of workers, increase wage and non-wage remuneration to a level where you have enough workers.
This is literally Econ 101.
Around here there was a massive collapse after the bubble, and lots of people gave it up or moved away because what's the point of a feast or famine job that blows up when you need it.
Indeed, maybe they should have to raise the pay to match the risk…….