ConstructConnect Blog

Worker misclassification is a serious problem in the construction industry that often goes unchecked and unpunished. Penalties for misclassifying employees as independent contractors can be severe, but unfortunately, the risk of getting caught has historically been minimal. The payoff for unscrupulous business owners who purposely misclassify workers can be enormous. It’s a classic risk vs. reward scenario where, for the most part, the rewards for purposely misclassifying workers as independent contractors far outweighed the risks of getting caught.

In 2016, we launched a webinar series for subcontractors and it has been one of the most enjoyable experiences of my entire construction career. It keeps me connected to our customers and up-to-date with the latest trends and ongoing changes in the construction industry.

The construction industry is in the midst of a growing labor shortage. Just this month I’ve run across a half dozen local news reports of construction worker shortages across the country. Construction firms in Phoenix, AZ; Bradenton and Sarasota, FL; Long Island, NY and the Lowcountry of South Carolina, which includes Charleston, are having difficulties finding enough skilled workers to meet demand. These aren’t isolated events. Every month you’re bound to find new reports of areas feeling the pinch.

Lean construction is all about efficiency. Construction firm owners should care about it because it has the potential to saves firms time and money. Lean construction accomplishes savings by allowing teams to complete jobs faster with less waste of materials, time and labor. This is especially important to construction companies after the end of the recession.

Is your construction company still not using Building Information Modeling (BIM)? If your firm hasn’t adopted BIM yet I’m sure there’s a valid reason. Perhaps you think it’s too expensive or you don’t have the resources to implement adoption. Maybe your estimators love spending countless hours doing manual takeoffs from plans and specs when preparing bids. It could be you enjoy doing costly rework that eats away at your profits.

Jobsite thefts of tools, equipment and materials continues to be an issue plaguing the construction industry. Unattended construction sites are easy targets for thieves, especially those lacking adequate security measures. Heavy equipment, power and hand tools and materials such as copper are the most targeted items. According to the National Equipment Register (NER), heavy equipment theft has been on the rise the past couple of years with 11,625 thefts being reported to law enforcement in 2014.

What is the biggest current challenge facing the construction industry? It’s certainly not demand—in fact, the worldwide demand for construction is quite high. According to professional services provider PwC, global construction output is projected to grow 85% by 2030, with an average of 3.9% per annum up to 2030, which outpaces global GDP by a whole percentage point. Much of the recent growth in the construction industry can be attributed to both developed countries recovering from the 2008 recession and undeveloped countries continuing to industrialize.

The Maintenance of Construction Equipment

Apprenticeships play a vital role in supplying the construction industry with its skilled workforce. Unfortunately, at their current enrollment and completion levels, registered apprenticeships alone aren’t enough to meet the current and projected demands for the industry over the next decade. To be fair, apprenticeships have never been the sole provider of labor to the construction workforce but they are a key piece of the puzzle. The potential for apprentice programs to play a larger role in training and preparing the next generation of skilled labor is high, but changes are needed. Dealing with construction labor shortages has been a growing issue over the past few years and establishing a stronger network of apprentice programs can go a long way in resolving those issues.