Pennsylvania contractors report difficulty finding skilled workers

Nearly two-thirds of Pennsylvania's contractors reported having difficulty finding skilled workers, and many of them expect the labor market to get tighter over the next year, according to a national survey released Wednesday.

Firms in the state said the most severe shortages are for project managers and supervisors, and 62 percent said they were having a hard time filling skilled craft positions such as carpenters, electricians and roofers, the annual workforce survey by the Associated General Contractors of America found.

Meanwhile, more than a quarter of firms in the state said it will become harder to hire people in the next 12 months, and none said it will become easier.

Pennsylvania echoed a nationwide trend in which firms are struggling to replace retiring baby boomers as younger people shun careers in the trades.

“With the construction industry in most of the country now several years into a recovery, many firms have gone from worrying about not having enough work to not having enough workers,” said Stephen Sandherr, CEO of Associated General Contractors of America.

In this region, hiring challenges are expected to get worse as Royal Dutch Shell prepares to build a multibillion-dollar petrochemical plant in Beaver County. Shell officials said roughly 6,000 construction workers will be needed to build the ethane cracker when it breaks ground in the next 18 months, with that work lasting several years.

The shortages in Western Pennsylvania haven't been as severe as in other markets, but the concerns for a labor shortage will be very real when cracker construction gets started, said Jack Ramage, executive director of Master Builders' Association of Western Pennsylvania.

“I think we're going to be in for a manpower crunch in the next few years,” Ramage said.

Several trade unions in the Pittsburgh region are increasing the size and frequency of classes in their training programs with the goal of preparing more workers for jobs at the Shell site and elsewhere.

The ramp-up in demand could be good for worker wages as firms compete for talent. Fewer firms in Pennsylvania said they raised pay to attract workers than elsewhere in the country. The survey showed that only 14 percent of Pennsylvania contractors raised base pay rates for hourly personnel, compared to 48 percent nationally.

Other findings from Pennsylvania firms included:

• 57 percent said the local pipeline for well-trained craft personnel is “fair” to “poor.”

• 74 percent expect to hire additional craft personnel in the next 12 months.

• 42 percent of those having trouble filling positions said they struggle to find operators for cranes and heavy equipment, followed by 41 percent for superintendents and 36 percent for truck drivers.

Source: Tribune Live